April 19, 1885

Defiled and Defiling   “Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean. Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the LORD; and so is every …

Haggai:2:13, 14

April 16, 1885

The Cause and Cure of a Wounded Spirit   “The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?” — Proverbs xviii. 14.   EVERY man, sooner or later, has some kind of infirmity to bear. It may be that his constitution from the very first will be inclined to certain diseases and …

Proverbs:18:14

April 12, 1885

To Lovers of Jesus: An Example   “She hath wrought a good work on me.”— Mark xiv. 6.   THIS holy woman had displeased the disciples. She must have been very sorry to do that. She would not have wilfully grieved the least servant of her Lord. But she did so without the slightest blame on her part: it …

Mark:14:6

April 12, 1885

The Man Christ Jesus   “Now consider how great this man was.”— Hebrews vii. 4.   CONSIDER how great Melchizedek was. There is something majestic about every movement of that dimly-revealed figure. His one and only appearance is thus fitly described in the Book of Genesis,— “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was …

Hebrews:7:4

April 12, 1885

A Man Named Matthew   “As Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.” — Matthew ix. 9.        This is a little bit of autobiography. Matthew wrote this verse about himself. I can fancy him, …

Matthew:9:9

April 5, 1885

A Proclamation from the Kings of Kings   “Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever. Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou …

Jeremiah:3:12-13

March 22, 1885

The Singular Origin of a Christian Man   “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”— Ephesians ii. 10.   THIS text is written by the apostle as a reason why salvation cannot be a thing of human merit: “not of works, lest any …

Ephesians:2:10

March 18, 1885

The Bible   “I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing.” Hosea viii. 12.   THIS is God’s complaint against Ephraim. It is no mean proof of his goodness, that he stoops to, rebuke his erring creatures; it is a great argument of his gracious disposition, that he …

Hosea:8:12

March 15, 1885

How "The Unspeakable" is Spoken of   “And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness. They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.”— Psalm cxlv. 6, 7.   IN this psalm David has reached the Beulah laud of his songs, where we …

Psalms:145:6-7

March 4, 1885

The Peculiar Sleep of the Beloved   “For so he giveth his beloved sleep.” — Psalm cxxvii. 2.   THE sleep of the body is the gift of God. So said Homer of old, when he described it as descending from the clouds, and resting on the tents of the warriors around old Troy. And so sang Virgil, when …

Psalms:127:2