Homily

The witness
Of the Spirit,
Is that first
Streak of light,
Bringing the promise,
Of the coming day.
A pouring within,
Of the grapes
Of Eschol.
Showing what
The vintage will be.

Tiniest Puppy

WEST SACRAMENTO — A puppy named after one of the world's biggest pop stars could set the world's record for tiniest dog.

Animal rescuers in Northern California say the female Dachshund mix, named Beyonce, was so small at birth that she could fit into a spoon. At two weeks, she's about the size of a business card.
The Grace Foundation, based in El Dorado County, says animal control picked up Beyonce's pregnant mother, and she gave birth to a litter of five on March 8.
Beyonce was the last one delivered, and was born without a heartbeat. Veterinarians managed to revive her through chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
The foundation says she'll be ready for adoption in about two weeks.
Meanwhile, it has submitted an application to Guinness World Records for world's smallest dog.

Peace

John 14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.

Here, in John 14, our Lord was about to leave this world; and He knew it. So on this night, in His high priestly prayer, He makes His last requests known; kinda like a living will -- the world's first living will. His soul he committed to his Father; His clothes, He knew would fall to the soldiers; His mother, He would leave in the care of John: but what did He leave to His disciples, and all those who would believe on Him through them? Silver and gold He had none; but He left them, and us, something infinitely more valuable, His peace. "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you." I not only give you a title to it, He said, but I give you possession of it.  As a dying father leaves his portions to his children; so His peace is a part of our inheritance as lambs of the Living God; and it can never be taken from us if we do not give it up.

This peace is a harmonic rightness with God implanted deep within our hearts, it is also a budding union with all of God’s universe. Natural forces are at our back, when we are right with God and walk in His peace;  as it is written “The whole creation groans and waits for the manifestation of the children of God.” When a man is one with the Maker he has the co-operation of all that the Maker has made. The winds and currents are his friends, and  the heavens fight on his side -- even the stones of the field lay in covenant with the lamb living in the flow of God's peace.

Most people, when they think of a peaceful setting, would seek it near some secluded mountain-lake, nestling quiet and untroubled far from the beaten path, and where even the cry of a nature is only rarely heard. It is by these “still waters,” and in these deep silences, that they call to mind the gift of peace. Others may see visualizations of a different sort, a beach, a boat, it could be anything; but for me when I think on the peace of God, I think of the verse from Isaiah: thy peace is like a river. this may seem, at first glance, like an odd choice, but for me, the peace our Lord bequeathed to us is a peace of motion and fulfillment, not one necessarily of quiet and stillness.

How prescient and thoughtful was the prophet’s choice of a river as his figure of peace.  Not a lake, not a pool, not a scene of quiet and stillness, but a river. He is not necessarily deriding the idea of a peaceful quietude; he is trying to point to a quality of life and movement:  peace is not motionless quietude, but quiet motion. Peace has its appropriate figure in the brimming river,  quiet because of its steadiness and depth. God's peace in our souls, my friend,  is liquid, frictionless motion, in the midst of the chaos that surrounds it. What he was trying to get across to us is that  this perfect peace is found in a lamb's life only when that life moves and breathes in God’s life without complaint, without fret,  and without friction. It is not so much found in the absence of sound as in the absence of any discordant notes. The peace of Christ is musical movement, it is a divine harmony of spirits.

Our Master’s conception of this peace is given in His often repeated words, “I and My Father are one.” When one life flows into another life with seamless perfection; commingling—will with will, soul with soul, heart with heart, the two become one, this is the the essential secret of experiencing and living in His peace. And when that perfect commingling is between the the lamb's heart and God, he will have learned the secret of perfect peace. That was the peace our Lord enjoyed -- His peace, and this is the peace He  has promised and provided, “My peace I give unto you.”

Communion

Communion;
Communion with God:
The words fell freely
Through my lips;
But the savor,
Where was the savor?
"Oh, what a stranger am I
To the Living One, and all
That I flattered myself
To be acquainted with.
What do I know of
His transforming vision?
Of His inexpressible love?"
I, who could not abandon
My lust, and my shame.
Trapped in the flaming passion
Of performance, and duty:
I begat Him with my lips,
Yet saw Him not in my life.
Oh, that I might love Thee,
Let all else flee, and fall away;
That I might love Thee.

Out on the campus lawn,
Under a willow;
Almost unable to speak:
Little did I know
The power and the prophesy,
Of those words; those words
I had so longingly uttered;
And which had been
So lovingly heard;
That lonely midnight prayer,
That changed my life forever.

Amen; and praise
His Mighty Name!

Dying; We Live

After the Lord has quickened our souls, and we try to get serious about our spiritual life; we tend to think that from here on in, our way of life is to keep God's commandments — obey the law — cleanse ourselves from sin — reform our lives — cultivate universal holiness in thought, word, and action — and so we go — blundering and stumbling on in darkness — and all the while never get a single step forward.

We are ever looking for something in self to make ourselves acceptable to God. We are often sadly cast down and discouraged when we cannot find in ourselves — that holiness — that obedience — that calm submission to the will of God — that serenity of soul — that spirituality — that heavenly-mindedness — which we believe to be acceptable in His sight.

Our quick tempers — our fretful, anxious minds — our rebellious thoughts — our coldness and barrenness of heart — our constant struggle with the darkness within us — with the daily feeling that we get no better, but often worse — make us think that God views us just as we view ourselves -- as utter failures. And this brings on great darkness of mind and bondage of spirit — until we seem to lose sight of our acceptance in Christ — and get into the miserable dregs of self — almost ready to quarrel with God over our state of grace, because we seem so vile to ourselves, and only seem to get worse as we go along.

Now the more we get into these dregs of self — and the more we keep looking at the dreadful scenes of wreck and ruin which our heart presents to our daily view — the farther do we get from the grace of the gospel — and the more do we lose sight of the only ground of our acceptance with God.

Hear the words of Paul from the Letter to the Ephesians:

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love:
Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved.

It is in His righteousness; His sacrifice; His mercy; and His love that we are accepted into His beloved — and not for any good words — good works — good thoughts — good hearts -- or, for that matter, any good anything of our own. If there be any righteousness in us; it is only because He has placed it there -- not because of any natural seed within us.


But the Lord will allow us to wear ourselves out worrying about our own righteousness -- we all do at one time or another -- and after He has let us sink lower and lower into the pit of guilt and ruin, from feeling that all our attempts to extricate ourselves have only plunged us deeper and deeper into the mire. Here, in this deep pit of shame, as we abandon ourselves, our Lord opens a door within our hearts, and His Spirit floods our soul with a witness to keep us from sinking altogether into despair, without hope or help, without an understanding; and He immerses our soul in a vital discovery of Jesus, who He is, why He came, and of His glorious sacrifice thus making it known -- and clear to us, that there is a Savior, there is a Mediator, and there is a way of escape provided — this is a grand turning point in our walk with God, when we finally see the Opening in the valley of Achor (trouble), a way of life; a door of hope; a way out.

The fruit and the effect of this divine illumination is to cut in pieces, and root up all our fleshly wisdom, strength, and righteousness. God will never patch a new piece upon an old garment. All our wisdom, our strength, our righteousness must be torn to pieces. It must all be ripped out by the roots — that a new wisdom, a new strength, and a new righteousness may arise upon its ruins.

But until the Lord is pleased to drive us to this moment, to our own point of despair, and teach us through His Spirit of Illumination, we never can part with our own righteousness — never give up our own wisdom — never abandon our own strength. These things are a part and parcel of ourselves — they are who we are; so ingrained and innate within us, that we cannot willingly part with them until the Lord Himself demolishes the house we have built up in our own strength. Then, as He flashes into our souls  the vision of our corruption and our folly in a thousand ways, and our blindness to all things of the spirit — our wisdom fades away. As He shows us our inability to resist temptation and overcome sin, by any exertion of our own — our confidence in our own strength and righteousness dissipates, and dies, as we begin, at last, to put on the new man.

Upon the bleached remains, then, of our own wisdom, righteousness and strength, does God build up Christ's wisdom, Christ's righteousness, and Christ's strength. But only so far as we are filled with His Spirit can a death sentence be carried out  upon our own wisdom, strength, and righteousness — and a new life in our risen Lord begin.

"As dying, and, behold, we live." 2 Corinthians 6:9

Though we die, and die daily — yet, behold, we live. And in a sense, the more we die, the more we live. The more we die to self — the more we die to sin. The more we die to pride and self-righteousness — the more we die to creature strength. The more we die to sinful nature — the more we live to grace. This runs all the way through the life and experience of a believer.

Nature must die, that grace may live. The weeds must be plucked up, that the crop may grow. The flesh must be starved, that the spirit may be fed. The old man must be put off, that the new man may be put on. The deeds of the body must be mortified, that the soul may live unto God. As then we die — we live. The more we die to our own strength, the more we live to Christ's strength. The more we die to creature hope, the more we live to a solid hope through grace. The more we die to our own righteousness, the more we live to Christ's righteousness. The more we die to the world, the more we live to and for the Kingdom of Heaven. This is the grand mystery — that the believer is always suffering, yet always joyful; always emptying himself, yet always full; always dying, yet eternally alive — and the more he dies, the more he lives. For the death of the flesh, is the life of the spirit, and the death of sin, is the life of righteousness. The death of the creature, is the very life of God in our souls. And this, my friends is our only way of escape; our only way out: "As dying, and, behold, we live."

Driving Through The Storms

Driving through the storms;
My wits hover,
In the consciousness
Of His loving presence;
And all unrest is soothed:
The heaving ocean,
Lodged high in my throat;
Is as an untroubled bayou;
Charmed, and glistening,
In the evening sun.

Yesterday was quite a day on the road for me. I was right in the middle of the Kentucky/Indiana/Ohio tornado outbreak. I was in Ky, across the Ohio River from Indiana & Ohio when the first group went through; I could see the clouds across the river; storm sirens were going off everywhere in a driving rain and emergency vehicles were flying down the road toward the blackest part of the clouds. It didn't iake a rocket scientist to see that this was a ferocious storm; yet it came no closer to me. The second storm was a different matter; it was much closer, and on a normal Friday, would have been directly in my path. I was southeast of Cincinnati on route 125, and I could see the storm move in and hit directly in front of me, Bethel was only a few miles ahead of me on this same road, but on this night, a regular customer in Georgetown -- further up this same road, the other side of Bethel -- did not order, so I headed north instead of further southeast. Had I gone to Georgetown, as usual, I would have been directly in its path at almost exactly the right time. As I headed home; and dozens of emergency vehicles passed the other way by me towards the storm damage; Psalm 91 echoed over and over again in my mind: Marysville, Indiana was on my right -- Bethel, Ohio was on my left -- yet did I pass through it all untouched. Who can understand or know His ways?

The Joy Of Possessing

Things that come easily,
Are lightly esteemed:
The pebble lying
On the common way,
Is beneath regard;
Yet the pearl
Buried in the ocean depths,
Is a treasure
Of rare price.
The pain of getting,
So intensifies
The joy of possessing.

It Was Not The Nails

1Pe 1:9  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
1Pe 1:10  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pe 1:11  Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
1Pe 1:12  Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

Things which the angels desire to look into

To the carnal, earthly, degraded mind of man — the mystery of the Person of Christ, of the cross, of the sufferings, blood-shedding, and death of Jesus, whereby He put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself — is foolishness. He sees no beauty, blessedness, or glory in the Person of the Son of God — nor any wisdom or grace in atoning blood and dying love.

But not so with these bright and pure beings! They see in the Person and work of Christ not only the depths of infinite wisdom in the contrivance of the whole plan of redemption, and of power in its execution and full accomplishment — but they see such lengths, breadths, depths, and heights of love as fill their minds with holy wonder, admiration and praise. They see in His incarnation, humiliation, sufferings, blood-shedding, and death — such unspeakable treasures of mercy and grace as ever fill their minds with wonder and admiration; and they long to understand the depths of such a love, but they cannot -- these wonders are for the bride alone. All lambs of the Living God should be ever seeking and inquiring into this heavenly mystery, that we may discover in it ever new and expanding treasures of the wisdom, grace, mercy, truth, and love of God. It is to our shame, my friends, that this vision of Eternal Love, in its sacrificial essence is not always before our eyes. Tonight I want to look into this scene of our Lord's offering of Himself, and share a few thoughts that He has laid on my heart.



Let your mind and spirit come with me now to view that day on the hill of Golgatha,
To see, by the eye of faith, as revealed  by the
power of God — our savior bound, scourged,
whipped, spit upon, mocked—and then, as the climax,
crucified between two thieves.

But what we see, is that this was the
smallest part of His sufferings— there were yet depths of
soul trouble and agony from the
hand of God as a consuming fire, in justice
and righteous indignation against rebellion, sin, and corruption; that our
Lord had to endure until He was poured
out like water, and His  heart, in the fires of
judgment became like wax, and melted within Him.


It was not the nails driven through His hands and feet — it was not the crown of thorns forced upon His brow — it was not the stripes which mangled His back — it was not the languor and faintness under which He suffered — nor the loss of blood that caused the Lord to die. It was not the mere bodily agony of the cross — it was not simply the pain of the nails driven through His hands and feet, as severe as this must have been -- It was not the being stretched upon the cross six hours, that constituted the chief part of the Redeemer's suffering.

No, far more severe, were the agonies of His
soul — the wrath of God in the Redeemer's heart was so much
more devastating than the nails that pierced His hands and feet,
or the thorns upon His head.

It was this load of imputed sin — the imputed sins of millions — a load unbearable for any other -- it was the tremendous pouring of the wrath of God into His innocent soul — it was the hiding of His Father's face, and the very fires of hell that sought to take hold of Him -- as prophesied in His Word:  Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion.  I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. Our suffering Savior drank the cup of the wrath of God to the very dregs — when the penalties for our rebellion were laid upon Him -- it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; as Isaiah wrote: He has put Him to grief: when You shall make His soul an offering for sin. This is what claimed our Savior's life: it was not the nails.

Uncounted thousands may have died in greater bodily agony than our Lord, for He only suffered in body for six hours. Martyrs have perished in the flames, in dungeons, at the hand of the executioner, and on crosses, as burning torches lining the roads of Rome. But of all the generations of men, none have ever felt what the Lord endured in His soul — for He had to suffer in His soul what the elect of God -- His lambs -- would have had to suffer in hell, if He had not paid the price for them; and this eternity of pain, is what He endured in those same six hours.


What is the body anyway? We all know that our body is not the chief seat of suffering.  It is the soul that feels, and rejoices, and mourns. All of our deepest agonies are of the soul. It was so with our Lord as well. It is true, His body was racked and torn — but it was the racking of His soul in which lay His chief agonies. And the greatest of all was the final stroke of God reserved for His last moments — the last drop of the cup in all its bitterness — which was hiding His face from His Son. Nothing else but this last bitter drop extorted the cry of suffering from His lips:

My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?

But when, to crown all the scene of suffering, the Father hid His face from Him — that was more than His  soul could bear.

In the words of Thomas Morton:
"What heart can conceive or tongue express what must have
been the feelings of the Redeemer's soul when He, the beloved
Son of God, who who had lain in the bosom of the Father from
all eternity, was by imputation, made a sinner—the deep wounds
of suffering love felt by the Son of God when His Father, His own
Father, hid His face from Him?"

That instinctively evoked from Him that plaintive cry — such a cry as earth had never before or since — a cry which made the sun to hide its face as if in sackcloth; caused the earth to shake; rending the veil, and tearing open the very graves as if the world could no longer hold its dead. And I guess that is the point: at the foot of the cross, is pardon and peace
for the guilty. Here is thorough justification for the
condemned. Here is salvation,
complete and everlasting, for all the redeemed family of
God. Here is a fountain, ever full and free. Here is
a robe, in which the Bride stands without blemish
and without spot before the throne of God. Here mercy is
magnified everlastingly. Here dying, sacrificial love displays itself in all its
breadth, and length, and depth, and height. Here, my friends, grace,
all-glorious, all-triumphant grace, reigns unto eternal life,
by Jesus Christ our Lord!

It says in His Word: Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.  His death of sacrificial love gives weight to His words and a certainty to their promise.

There is no beginning to the love of Christ, for it existed  from eternity. Neither is there any end to that love. His love then, is as eternal as He is. What strength it is for those who live and walk in the love of Christ, to know that it is from everlasting to everlasting—that no incidents of time—no storms of sin or Satan—can ever change or alter that eternal love—but that it remains now and will remain the same to all eternity. The love of Christ to His people is eternal, unchanging, and unchangeable.
This eternal, unchanging character of the love of Christ gives us strength and power to stand upon—apart from our fluctuating feelings—our wavering frames—and the changes that always seem to come in our thoughts, hearts and lives. The love of Christ to us is not changing and changeable like ours to Him—but it abides forever, as He does. Jesus freely, fully, and unchangeably loves those who were given to Him by the Father in the councils of eternity—and presented to Him as His spouse and bride.
Christ's love to His bride was love at first sight. For when she was presented to Him by the Father that she might be His spouse—as soon as He beheld His chosen bride He fell in love with her—for He saw her not sunk and fallen—but in all her beauty as clothed in the fullness of that glory in which she will one day shine forth—when she sits down with Him at the marriage supper of the Lamb!
Nothing can quench or destroy the love of Christ! It will prevail over sin, death, and hell—yes, over every impediment and obstacle—until it achieves the final victory, and in all the blaze of His glory — it will fill heaven with its eternal magnificence.

So, my friends, keep this vision of His sacrifice ever before you, and do not shy away from it or forget it; for it is the highest and greatest glory of God and all creation; and it is life itself, life eternal unto all who believe. Amen.

Intercession

Rom 8:26  Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Rom 8:27  And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

The Spirit, as an enlightening Spirit, He teaches us what to pray for; as a sanctifying Spirit, He works and stirs up the need and the desire to pray; as a comforting Spirit, He silences our fears, and helps us over all discouragements. The Holy Spirit is the wellspring of all desires toward God, which are often more than words can utter. The Spirit who searches the hearts, can perceive the renewed mind and will of the spirit, and advocates his cause. The Spirit makes intercession to God, in sublime and affecting cries, which cannot be expressed in  language.

Sublime and affecting cries, which cannot be expressed in any articulate language outside the Spirit of God.

We do not know what we ought to pray for.  What shall we say before the our Heavenly Father? With what feelings, with what language, with what arguments shall we unburden our hearts, unveil our sorrows, confess our sins, and make known our requests? How shall we overcome the remembrance of past stumblings,  the convictions of present guilt, the pressure of deep need, and the overwhelming sense of the Divine Majesty? Regularly, all believers feel these uncertainties within themselves -- we can sense that our need is great; but we often do not know quite where to begin, or even how best to approach Him . . . sometimes it almost seems that our prayers are beset in an atmosphere of uncertainty, confusion, and distraction:

    Guilt troubles our conscience;
    doubt vexes our spirits;
    a sense of ignorance invades our soul;
    a crowd of foolish wanderings and evil imaginations distract our thoughts;
    and in the midst of all this -- satan hurls his fiery darts, with their accusations of infidelity, fast and furious in his attempt to raise a cloud of doubt over the Mercy Seat;
    so that amid all this throng and confusion, our thoughts become muddled and our words seem as idle breath, or the imagined fruit of our own impotence.


In this scene of confusion and distraction, when all seems going to the wreck — the Spirit comes, as it were, to the aid of the saint, to teach him how to pray and even what to pray for. He even writes the prayer, so to speak. Do not think that that spiritual petition, which breathed from your lips and rose as an incense-cloud before the mercy-seat, was other than the composition of the Holy Spirit. He inspired that prayer, He created those desires, and He awoke those groanings. The form of your petition may have been ungraceful, your language simple, your sentences broken, yet there was an eloquence and a power in that prayer which reached the heart and moved the arm of God. And whose eloquence and whose power was it? It was the power of God's Holy Spirit – only of His interceding Spirit. He teaches us what to pray for. Many and urgent as our needs are, we only accurately know them as the Spirit makes them known to us. But the Spirit reveals our deepest needs, convinces us of our emptiness, our poverty, and of our longings for God, and teaches us what blessings to ask, what evils to stand against, and what mercies we need to implore.

He puts us at ease with our infirmity in prayer, by showing to our soul the loving character of God. Sealing within our hearts a sense of our Divine adoption, He emboldens us to approach God with the love of a son and with a child-like confidence. He leads us to God as our Father while pleading the shed blood of Yeshua before the Throne to prevent satan's spirits of confusion and confrontation from invading in these times of communion with the Living God. He is always here within us, my friends, to comfort, to intercede, to instruct, and to strengthen. As we seek the Throne in prayer; He gives sight to our spirits, that we may see that blood on the Mercy Seat, and know that He hears us.


When the soul is led by His Spirit in prayer, my beloved,  its petitions are a spiritual sacrifice, pleasing in the eyes of our Lord, and its cries enter the very ears of Heaven; as it written:

And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

For through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.

amen

Lord, all my desire is before You. My groaning is not hidden from You.

Morning Glorious!

"Let this be your daily prayer, my beloved, Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

It is good that a lamb be examined regularly by his Shepherd -- amen."

I have begun a new series of morning devotionals called
Morning Glorious! at my newest podcast site.

The initial podcast is now up @
http://brightclearing.podbean.com/ 

The Voice Of My Weeping

"The Lord has heard the voice of my weeping." Psalm 6:8

How often has prayer found me grieving; weeping almost in despair; but left me triumphant in His hope and assurance.

Tears have a voice, and God has an ear to our groanings, our sighs, and our wimpers, just as upon our prayers.
The burdened tears of His lambs are divine ambassadors, which never return from the throne of Heaven without answers of grace. Peter
said nothing, but went out and wept bitterly — and obtained mercy. These bitter tears are an unarticulateable utterance of the soul, prompted by the Holy Spirit;
that will prevail for His mercy.

There is a voice in weeping; it does speak, it utters its meaning in that universal tongue which is known and understood in all the earth, and even in heaven above. When a man weeps, it is the inexpressible eloquence of his sorrow, needing no interpreter, but understood of all -- our tears are understood even when words fail us.

Our prayerful weeping is a witness of our spiritual life; these deep groans and sighs are a constant flow of importunate intercession;  they are the pantings of His holiness, implanted deep within our hearts, hungering and thirsting after righteousness. They are also the outward expression to God of the grief within our own soul, for we suffer when we are tempted, or anytime His holiness within us feels contact with evil.

The spiritual sighs and groanings of the believer are interpreted by God as the prayers of a broken and a contrite heart -- our sobbings of the soul are of great price in His sight, and bring Him praise and honor, as the smell of sweet sacrifice. The believer's moans resonate throughout heaven: as His Word proclaims, "the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping,"  "and my groaning is not hid from Thee".

Our tears speak to Him of godly sorrow, our moans as the breathings of a contrite spirit. God hears the cry of our soul, the voice of our tears sometimes better than the voice of our words; for it is the Spirit itself that makes intercession for us within these groans, and  in these tears, which we cannot utter -- these devout, and simple tears, which cannot speak of their own, speak loud in the ears of God, my friends. These flowing overtures of repentance, pouring out of the sorrow of the heart and the groaning of the spirit, open the very doors of our soul to our Risen Lord, the Living God, that He may enter into His temple, setting the captive free. "From heaven does the Lord behold the earth: to hear the groaning of the prisoner." (J C Philpot)

I will leave you with the testimony of His Word:

"The Lord has heard the voice of my weeping. The Lord hath heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer."

"Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee"

"For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities"

"I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears."

"For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning."

"They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble"


"A lamb's face never shines so beautiful, as when it is bedewed with penitential tears." (Thomas Brooks)

Love, Eternal

I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.  Jeremiah 31:3

I have loved thee: I, who am the great God, the Creator of the ends of the earth, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; a God of infinite purity and holiness; the Lord that changes not: and His love is like unto Himself: it is sovereign, unchangeable, and eternal.

Hear the testimony of Jude: .... To those who have been called, who are loved by God the Father and preserved in Christ Jesus ...

God's people have had a vital, living union with Christ, long before
our awakening unto Him in this life -- we have, and have always had an
eternal, immanent union with Him before all worlds were created.
It is by virtue of this eternal union that we come into the world . . .
   at such a time,
   at such a place,
   from such parents,
   and under such circumstances,
as God has appointed.

It is by virtue of this eternal union that the circumstances
of our lives are ordained. By virtue of this eternal union
we are preserved in Christ, even before we are awakened by His Spirit.
The lamb will not pass until God has reawakened that vital
union with Christ within him.

Whatever sickness we may pass through—whatever
injuries we may be exposed to—whatever perils assault
us — perish we will not, we cannot;
until God's purposes in us are executed.

Thus, this eternal union watched over every circumstance
of our birth, watched over our childhood, watched over us until the appointed
time and spot, when the God of all grace, according to
His eternal purpose, quickened our hearts, and awakened us,
renewing this eternal union with the Lord of all life and glory.

You see, my friends, the love of Christ is eternal; it is not a passion of His humanity — but a witness to, and a perfection of His divinity. He has always existed — and He has always loved His people. His people . . .
  have always had a place in His bosom,
  have ever been before His eye, and
  have always been loved by Him.

Hear the words of our Lord from Proverbs:
Pro 8:30  Then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him: and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him;
Pro 8:31  Rejoicing in the habitable part of His earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.

He has loved us — ever since He knew us — and He knew us from before all creation. His love has run through the boundless ages of eternity past — and fixed upon those who were His; and having fixed upon us — His love forever maintains its hold.

When He created the earth, spread abroad the Heavens, and gave His decree to the sea — His love was fixed upon His people. Their welfare, in connection with His Father's glory was the object which He sought in all things.

When we consider the dim past; even flowing into the mists of eternity — there is an echo that resounds within all of our hearts: our Savior loved us then; He loved us from all eternity; always, has He loved us; and always will He love us. My friends . . .
  before worlds existed,
  before devils appeared,
  before sin was committed;
we were the delight of His heart.

His love to us is as eternal as His nature — without beginning of days, or end of years; and from His love, as from a mighty river, flows . . .
  all the acts of His power,
  all the displays of His benevolence,
  all the manifestations of His grace, and
  all the provisions of His gospel.

This witness and testimony of His love has been a beacon shining through His Word, and the hearts of His lambs down through the centuries:
We are a chosen generation, my friends, a royal priesthood.

Every believer is a chosen vessel. The body of our Lord had its origin in Jehovah's eternal choice. This eternal choice . . .
  is an exercise of His Divine sovereignty;
  yet, it flows from Divine love;
  for it secures the lamb's salvation and God's eternal glory.

He chose us in Christ before the creation of the world. It was a choice of pure grace and love; but it was also an election unto holiness -- unto His holiness:

We were chosen to be . . .
  redeemed from curse;
  purified from sin;
  separated from the world;
  wedded unto the Lamb; and therefore,
  eternally one with Jehovah.

Being chosen of God -- we choose Him in return.
His choice caused ours; it was not the other way around.

As it says in His Word:

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;


Do you remember, my friends, the days before you were awakened? Always searching for God;
but never quite apprehending -- you had learned the language of Christ, forgiveness, and grace;
but what, in your heart did you truly know of these things?  Nothing, absolutely nothing!

Ignorant of your own ignorance — you thought yourself rich,
and increased with goods, and to have need of
nothing—and you knew not that you were wretched,
miserable, poor, blind, and naked.

Then, in His own time, Almighty God reached into your world
and you were never the same again. In that one instant, you were awakened,
and called out -- in that world altering flash you saw,  at once  . . .
  God and self,
  justice and guilt,
  power and helplessness,
  a holy law and a broken commandment,
  eternity and time,
  the purity of the Creator, and
     the filthiness of the man.

And these things you saw, and you received — not merely as
promises — but as  personal, living realities, encompassing all
of your struggles and all of your joys in time and
in eternity;  as though a new existence had been communicated,
a new dimension had been opened, and a new life was given.

It was as though all your days you had been asleep,
and were now awakened -- as if all
your past life were a dream, and in this dream, you had been:
  hunting butterflies and chasing bubbles;
  picking daisies and playing games building houses of cards --
and the dream was now at an end.


But now awakened by the power of Almighty God, washed in the Blood of the Lamb, and enlivened by the Spirit of Truth;
you travel as one apart, for you are now forever conscious that you have been redeemed and set apart by the Living God.

In this new walk, through this anointing from the Holy One, you see that you can do all things, be all things, and bear all things.

Though. we soon find that we can no longer abide all things -- because we have seen the glory of God and have been filled with His Truth,
we can no longer stomach the lie we see everywhere about us in the world we were once so attached to -- The main characteristic of a child of God is that he is now a
stranger upon earth. One of the first effects of the
grace of God upon our soul was to separate us from
the world, and make us feel ourselves estranged from it.

The world was once our home — the active, busy center
of all our thoughts, desires, and affections. But when His
grace planted His imperishable principles of life into our bosom,
it at once separated us from the world in heart and spirit; life, and walk.
We are strangers by the power of divine grace making
this world a wilderness to us.

This may seem a strange path in which to return to eternity; but this is only because of our limited perspective, the wilderness journey is part of His plan;
as it says in His Word:  Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.

When you are in the wilderness, you have no friend — no creature help — no worldly comfort — these have all abandoned you. God has led you into the wilderness to  separate you from these earthly ties of creature refuges and vain hopes, that He may Himself become your help, your friend, your comfort; and speak His Words of life, and love to your soul.

If, then, you are separated from the world by being brought into the wilderness — if you are passing through trials and afflictions — if you are exercised with a variety of temptations — and are brought into that spot where the creature yields — it is because then, and only then, are you made to see, feel, and understand that nothing but God living and breathing with power deep within your soul can give you any solid grounds of rest or peace. It may be painful — it is painful — but it is profitable, because by it we learn to look to the Lord and the Lord alone — and this must ever be the lesson to learn for every child of God.

Hear the words of Peter, my friends, ... you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people ...

The Son of God gave Himself to purify unto the Father a peculiar people — a people whose thoughts are peculiar, for their thoughts are the thoughts of God — a people whose affections are peculiar, for they are fixed on things above — a people whose prayers are peculiar, for they are wrought in their heart by the Spirit of grace and supplication — a people whose sorrows are peculiar, because they spring from a spiritual renewal — a people whose joys are peculiar, for they are joys of a soul at peace with God — a people whose hopes are peculiar, as anchored within the veil — a people whose expectations are peculiar, as witnessed in His Word:

Psa 107:2  Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
Psa 107:3  And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
Psa 107:4  They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in.
Psa 107:5  Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.
Psa 107:6  Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.
Psa 107:7  And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.

And the only city of habitation, our only place of refuge, is the City of God, from which we departed for our sojourn here according to His will; and our only path of return, my friends, runs through the Blood, the resurrection, and the renewal in the wilderness.

We confess to be strangers and pilgrims here on earth. The people of God are expected to be different from the world. We profess to be of another Spirit, and to be the sons of God.  We look for a new heaven and a new earth,  for that coming of His Holy City, wherein alone dwells Righteousness.

His Spirit encourages us to be watchful, prayerful, diligent, holy, patient, thankful, and expectant .......
and to set little value on the things of time and space, for our hearts and our eyes should be fixed on the things which are eternal.

For we, ourselves, if we be lambs of the Living God, are of these things which are eternal.

The Morning Dew

The Word of God often compares His people to the life giving dew. Like the dew, God's people nourish His creation humbly; silently; and almost without perception or appreciation. As the dews of heaven, His lambs choose, as their time of refreshment, a  darkened world where all men are sleeping, and few can see their silent, life giving work. They cover the leaves with clusters of pearls. They impart into the bosoms of the flowers, and leaves new cupfuls of sweet life. They pour themselves down among the roots of the grasses and tender herbs and plants, losing themselves altogether, and yet they are not lost. For in the morning there is fresh life everywhere, and new beauty. The fields are greener, the gardens are more fragrant, and all nature is clothed in His fresh luxuriance.

Here, my friends, is our blueprint, our heavenly paradigm for service in His Kingdom; that we should be willing to lose ourselves in the self-forgetful love of His calling and service;  as the dew loses itself in the bosom of the rose — caring only that other lives shall be sweeter, happier, and holier — and not that honor shall come to us. We are too anxious, many of us, that our names shall be written in large letters on the things we do, even on what we do for our Master; and are not willing to sink ourselves out of sight — and let Him alone have the praise.

Our Lord's teaching on the subject is very plain. He says: "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full." That is, they have that which they seek — the applause of men.

This is an insightful test, both to God and to us, of our relationship with Him. Are we willing to be as the dew — to steal abroad in the darkness, carrying blessings to men's doors, blessings that shall enrich the lives of others and do them good — and then steal away again before those we have helped or blessed awaken, to know what hand it was that brought the gift? Are we willing to work for others . . .without gratitude ... without recognition ... without human praise ... without requital?

Are we content to have our lives poured out like the dew — to bless the world and make it more fruitful — and yet remain hidden away ourselves? Is it enough for us to see the fruits of our toil and sacrifice — in others' spiritual growth, and deeper happiness; yet never hear our names spoken in praise or honor — perhaps even hearing others praised for things we have done?

Hear what the Word has to say, my friends:
Psa 110:3  Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.
Psa 110:4  The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.

Lambs are not only marked by a glad obedience to our risen Lord, but that obedience rests upon the service of sacrifice. The word here rendered ‘willing’ is translated throughout  the Old Testament as freewill offerings. As priests after the order of Melchizedek, adorned in the beauties of His righteousness, birthed into this fallen world from the womb of Heaven itself, the sacrifice we have come to offer, is ourselves. It is this obedience, this willing, silent sacrifice that God accounts as the morning dews, bringing life and refreshment to His creation; and wafting a sweet smell of incense throughout the corridors of Heaven.

The Lamb

The lamb, is of
Another Spirit,
From the multitude
That tread upon
The courts of the Lord:
He has seen,
That of which
They have only heard.
The journey he takes
Is not on his feet,
But in his heart:
He walks with God,
In the garden
Of his own soul;
And as the
Morning dew,
Loses itself in the
Blossom of the rose;
He is drawn in,
Softly absorbed,
Into the wonders
Of Infinite love.

brightclearing @ podbean

I have opened another podcast at podbean called bright clearing.
It will have its own separate material from Cunneda's Ramble. He has not told me to discontinue these, but He has led me to begin something new and different. Pray that I follow His lead.

The first podcast for this new channel is now going up. You may listen

at http://brightclearing.podbean.com/


Cunneda

The Word

That most people find the Bible hard; if not impossible, to understand cannot be denied. Testimony to these difficulties  is too full and too widespread to be dismissed. As a teacher of His Word, this lack of understanding, aside from outright unbelief or hostility, is the most common problem I confront. Many would tell you that there are many reasons and complex answers for this; I respectfully disagree; I believe that most folks find the Bible difficult simply because they have no real relationship with its Author.

The Word of God is not addressed to just anybody. Its message is directed to a chosen few. These few are chosen by God in a sovereign act of election; they were known by God from everlasting to everlasting; and have known Him before they knew life in this world of darkness, ruled by time.  But whatever may have taken place in eternity, it is obvious what happens in time: some believe and some do not; some are  receptive and some are not; some have spiritual capacity and some have not. It is to those who do and are and have that the Bible is addressed. Those who do not and are not and have not will read it in vain -- in the words of our Lord; even the little they have shall be taken from them.

Right here, I know that some listeners will either turn me off, or enter  strenuous objections, and for reasons that are clear to see in every church across the land. Christianity, or more to the point. churchianity, today is man-centered, not God-centered. God is expected to wait patiently, even respectfully, on the whims of men. The image of God currently popular is that of a feeble, distracted Father, struggling in heartbroken desperation to get people to accept a Saviour in whom they feel no need and in whom they have very little interest. To persuade these self-sufficient souls to respond to His generous offers God will do almost anything, even using mass marketing and high tech video with contemporary music, while  talking down, and watering down His message to the lowest common denominator imaginable.  This view of things while it often uses flattering and sometimes lovey-dovey terms in praise of God, manages nevertheless to make man, a man other than Yeshua, our risen Lord, the star of the show. Just take a look at any of these mega-churches, or their rock star pastors --- case closed!

The notion that the Bible is addressed to everybody has wrought confusion within and without the body of Christ. The effort to apply the teaching of the Sermon on the Mount to the unregenerate masses of the world is but one example of this. Courts of law and the military powers of the earth are urged to follow the teachings of Christ, an obviously impossible thing for them to do. To quote the words of Christ as guides for policemen, judges and generals is to misunderstand those words completely and to reveal a total lack of understanding of the purposes of divine revelation. The life giving words of Christ are for the sons and daughters of grace, who will receive that life, not for those who merely seek a momentary diversion while leading a life dedicated to chasing and whoring around with the dragon; neither are they given to hostile nations or groups whose chosen symbols are a lion, an eagle, a bear, a crescent, a star, a compass, or the virgin.

Not only does God address His words of truth to those who are able to receive them, He actually conceals their meaning from those who are not. The preacher uses stories to make truth clear; our Lord often used them to obscure it. The parables of Christ were the exact opposite of the modern "illustration," which is meant to give light; the parables were "dark sayings" and Christ asserted that He sometimes used them so that His disciples could understand and His enemies could not. As the pillar of fire gave light to Israel but was cloud and darkness to the Egyptians, so our Lord's words shine in the hearts of His people but leave the self-confident unbeliever in the obscurity of spiritual midnight.

The  power of the Word is reserved for those for whom it is intended. The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him. The impenitent heart will find the Bible but a skeleton of words without flesh or life or breath. Stephen King, Shakespeare, or Louis La More may be enjoyed without either belief or penitence; we may understand Einstein, Plato, or Stephen Hawking without knowing anything about these men, or truly believing anything they say; but knowledge, penitence, and belief, along with faith and obedience are absolutely essential to a right understanding of the Scriptures. This is why God's Word will always be a mystery to the natural man; for you see, he has turned God's promises upside down, and therefore can see only distortion and delusion. In the world of the natural man, faith follows evidence and is impossible without it, but in the realm of the spirit, the language of His Living Word, faith precedes understanding; it does not follow it. The natural man must know in order to believe; the spiritual man  believes in order to know. We are of a different order. The faith that restores and renews is not a conclusion drawn from evidence; it is a heavenly thing, a thing of the spirit, a supernatural impartation and infusion, not only of belief and confidence, but also of knowledge of Him and a burning desire for His communion, deep within our hearts.

This is what makes us different, we see because it is placed within us to see, we understand, because He is within us, and we know Him. This faith, which is the only key to any effective understanding, reposes in Him; and it comes to us only when He resides within us. To rightly understand the Word is a supernatural act of God, just as much as were Christ's miracles, and His resurrection. These are impossible acts to the natural man; and explain why the things of God will always be a mystery to him.

The simple truth is that without the grace of God; that natural man cannot understand because it was not given to him to understand -- he has chosen darkness, and darkness will be his lot.

I Can See Her Still

Was it a dream?
Or just a time,
Lost in thought?
I can not say.
Yet I saw her then;
I can see her still,
In her gown
Of tattered white.
Stricken, and bowed,
So marred by pain,
and by tears;
That men shrank
From her, as one
Smitten of God.
Wrestling with the
Burden of her anguish;
She kneels in the dust:
Her head downcast,
As if hope had fainted;
Her beloved lyre,
Broken in her hand.
Resting upon a rock;
She presses to her ear
The one unbroken string,
As though catching
At the sweet music,
Of another place.
Softly, she smiles,
And pulls her hair
Away from her eyes,
As she rises slowly,
And makes her way,
Alone, down the path.

A Serene Apocalypse

This play of life,
Is a snowflake
On the pond:
A moment white,
Then gone forever;
Yea, without the Wine,
There is but
The empty cup.

Tears, falling
On the icy brow
Of death,
Can not redeem
The years:
Flowers on the grave,
Cast no
Backward fragrance
Over weary days.

Each small fragment:
Cupfulls of time;
In which our years
Come upon us;
Are buds of being:
Seed times, of a sort,
Unto Eternity:
A serene apocalypse,
In the hands
Of a loving God.

Emmanuel

In the process of time,
Did it come to pass:
Unto us a child was born,
Unto us a Son was given;
In Him was Life; and the Life,
Was a Light unto men;
That all men, through Him,
Might believe in the Light;
For His Light is life,
Unto all who believe.
And they called His name:
Emmanuel.


Merry Christmas to all !!!

Cunneda

Oh Ye Who Sigh

Oh, ye who sigh,
And languish,
Who mourn
Your lack of power,
Hear ye not
His plaintive sigh:
“Could ye not watch
With Me one hour?”
For His fruitfulness
And blessing
There is no simple road;
The power for
This walk of ours
Comes on your knees,
With God.

'Tis The Season To Be Jolly?

Run, run Rudolph: Reindeer spotted on Ohio highway


No one spotted Santa Claus, but several drivers say they encountered a reindeer as they drove along a northeast Ohio highway.

The Akron Beacon Journal reports  drivers on state Route 21 in Norton had to dodge the reindeer Sunday morning after it fell from the back of a livestock truck and walked down the middle of lanes.

Patrolman Kevin Starling grabbed a harness on the reindeer and pulled it out of traffic while an off-duty firefighter stopped oncoming vehicles.

Starling says the reindeer suffered road rash and a broken antler.

Authorities say the livestock truck was headed to a party when it hit a bump and the doors opened, allowing the reindeer to fall out. Officers found the truck and returned the reindeer to its owner.

I Guess anyone can have a bad day -- even a raindeer -- interesting timing though -- haha (my commentary; of course)


Drunken Santas Terrorized Lower Manhattan During SantaCon

SOUTH STREET SEAPORT — Thousands of drunken Santas terrorized Lower Manhattan when they flooded into the neighborhood for SantaCon earlier this month, openly flouting public drinking and urination laws, locals say.

Angry residents attended Community Board 1's Monday night meeting to complain about the latest incarnation of the annual pub crawl, whose participants have been allowed to grow more rowdy every year, they say.

"There was public urination, people vomiting all over the place, open containers and no police," said John Fratta, chairman of the Seaport/Civic Center Committee which plans to send an angry missive to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and the 1st Precinct complaining about the lack of enforcement during SantaCon.

The committee said that the NYPD devoted more resources to Occupy Wall Street than to SantaCon, and asked police for a better response at the neighborhood's next expected pub-crawl on St. Patrick's Day.

"The mayor put so much power on Occupy Wall Street, he had Downtown under lock and key — but he forgot about Santa," said Ann DeFalco, a member of Community Board 1's Seaport/Civic Center Committee, at a meeting Monday night.

Residents said they saw unruly Santas buying six-packs of bottled beer on Fulton Street, then standing in the middle of the street drinking them and shattering the empty glass bottles on the ground.

The mayor's office referred questions Tuesday morning to the NYPD. The NYPD did not return requests for comment.

CB1 staff said they spoke to Santacon organizers, who acknowledged that they had recieved complaints and planned to make changes for next year, a CB1 representative said.

SantaCon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

On its website, the group wrote, "Santa does not accept corporate sponsorship or speak to the press."

Paul Hovitz, a CB1 member, suggested that people who want to dress up as Santa should do a good deed rather than just drinking.

"Instead of going to pubs, they should go to senior centers and do something productive," Hovitz said.

"Santa should be associated with milk and cookies, not beer."

'Tis the season to be jolly -- right? (my commentary)