At The Center Of The Circle - Brengle, Samuel Logan

PREFACE

For many years, the writings of Commissioner Samuel Logan Brengle of The Salvation Army have been a source of inspiration and guidance to Christians who aspire to walk the upward way. His knowledge of the Scriptures; his winsome personality; his deep fervor and mighty faith; his intensely practical teachings – all these factors have been blessed by the Holy spirit in directing an innumerable multitude of seeking souls into the experience of full salvation, as well as instructing them in the elements of day-by-day Christian living. With the passing of the years, the company of those who remember the commissioner grows steadily smaller. To a rising generation, he is an almost legendary figure, and his books have become classics – distinguished, but unread. It is to this new generation, as well as the old, that the following selections from his writings as dedicated. Young, enthusiastic hearts will find common ground with mature veterans in the inspiration of these words of the Army’s apostle of holiness, whose teachings are as timely today as they ever were. Here will be found guidance in bewilderment, surely in doubt, and an answer to the problems of a seeking heart. It is our earnest prayer that these brief selections will awaken an appetite, and that the reader will dig deeply in the mine of the Brengle writings for the spiritual truths to be found there.

The Inner Circle

After that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance. – Eph. 1:13-14

The baptism of the Holy Ghost is not given to any and everybody. Jesus spoke of Him as One “whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him. Jesus did not say, “may not receive, ” but “cannot receive. ” He is given only to those who see and know. If a man has closed his eyes to light, if he has turned his heart from true knowledge, he cannot receive. And yet such people are responsible for their deprivation, because their blindness is due to their own action. Such people could not receive the Holy Ghost because they prepared not their hearts to receive Him. They turned away from the Saviour and the truth which alone could fit them to receive Him. The Holy Ghost is given only to those who, accepting Christ and following Him, are prepared to receive. The Pentecostal baptism is for an inner circle. It is a family affair. It is for the children who have become sons and daughters of God through penitent, obedient faith. It is part of their heritage. It is the portion of that immeasurable inheritance in Christ which is bestowed upon them while upon earth. What the measure of that full inheritance will be in the heavenly world no tongue can tell, no heart can conceive. Pentecost is the foretaste. It is that which, received and properly, wisely, diligently used, will fit us for the final and full reward, but which, rejected or neglected, will leave us eternal paupers among those who weep and gnash their teeth in outer darkness. John 14:17.

We Would See Jesus

Thou shalt call his name Jesus; for he shall save his people from their sins. – Matt. 1:21

The great work of this Holy Guest is to exalt Jesus; to glorify Him who humbled himself unto the shameful and agonizing death of the Cross; to make us to see Him in all His beauty; to knit our hearts to Him in faith and Jove and loyalty, conform us to His image, and fit us for His work. The Holy Ghost as Guest within us does not concentrate our attention upon His own person and work, but upon Jesus and His work and sacrifice for us. He does not glorify himself. He whispers continually of Christ and His example. He points us to Jesus. He would have us “consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; who was faithful. He would have us “consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, ” Jest, when we are tired and harassed, we “be wearied and faint” in our minds, and feel our cross too heavy to bear. “Even Christ pleased not himself, ” whispered He to my friend, who heard the sweet whisper and became as the Master. What we need evermore, in every place, at all times, in prosperity and adversity, in health and in sickness, in joy and sorrow, in sunshine and shadow, in wealth or grinding poverty, in comfort and distress, in the fellowship and love of friends, and in desolation and loneliness, in victory and defeat, in liberty or in prison, in deliverance or temptation, in life and in death; what we need and shall ever need, is to see Jesus, and, seeing Him, to walk in His footsteps.

True Recorder of His passion,
Now the living faith impart;
Now reveal His great salvation;
Preach His gospel to my heart.

CHARLES WESLEY Heb. 3:1; 12:3; Rom. 15:3

Wait on the Lord

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. – Ps. 27:14

If I were dying, and had the privilege of delivering a last exhortation to all the Christians of the world, and that message had to be condensed into three words, I would say, “Wait on God! Wherever I go I find backsliders – all kinds of backsliders by the thousand, until my heart aches as I think of the great army of discouraged souls, of the way in which the Holy Spirit has been grieved, and of the way in which Jesus has been treated. If these backsliders were asked the cause of their present conditions, 10,000 different reasons would be given; but, after all, there is but 1, and that is this: They did not wait on God. If they had waited on Him when the fierce assault was made that overthrew their faith, robbed them of their courage, and bankrupted their love, they would have renewed their strength and mounted over all obstacles as though on eagles’ wings. They would have run through their enemies and not been weary. They would have walked in the midst of trouble and not fainted.

Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our feverish ways!
Reclothe us in our rightful mind,
In purer lives Thy service find,
In deeper reverence, praise.
– JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER

A Humble Heart

He made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and… humbled himself. – Phil. 2:7-8

Jesus had a humble heart. Just a short time before His death, He took the menial place of a slave, washed His disciples’ feet, and then said: “I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. How that did help me in the training home! The second day I was there, they sent me down into a dark little cellar to black half a carload of dirty boots for the cadets. The devil came at me and reminded me that, a few years before, I had graduated from a university, that I had spent a couple of years in a leading theological school, had been pastor of a metropolitan church, had just left evangelistic work in which I saw hundreds seeking the Saviour, and that now I was only blacking boots for a lot of ignorant lads. My old enemy is the devil! But I reminded him of the example of my Lord, and he left me. Jesus said, “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. ” I was doing them – the devil knew it and let me alone, and I was happy. That little cellar was changed into one of heaven’s own anterooms, and my Lord visited me there.

Teach, O teach us, holy Child,
By Thy face so meek and mild,
Teach us to resemble Thee
In Thy sweet humility.
– EDWARD CASWALL

He Knows My Name

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me… A stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. – John 10:27, 5

It is openness of spiritual senses that makes and characterizes spiritual leaders. A spiritual leader is one who lives in the Spirit, who dwells in such constant and intimate closeness with God that he and his Lord commune with each other, giving and receiving messages. He has such confidence in the report of his spiritual senses that when God gives him a vision, he is not disobedient unto it – when God speaks, he rises up and follows. He knows the voice of his Shepherd, and that voice leads him on. The modern physiologist who is sure that there is a sufficient material explanation for all phenomena of mind and spirit, of conscience and will, as well as of matter, would say it was no divine voice. He would call it only the explosion of some overwrought brain cell, or the erratic or unexplored activity of one of the endocranial glands; while the devotee of the new psychology would have some other so-called scientific explanation that would exclude God. But the saints of Jesus, who know, with Paul, whom they believe, assert that it is the voice of the Good Shepherd who goes before His sheep. The unanimity of their testimony, the sweetness and strength of their lives, the enduring splendor of their achievements, and the glory and triumph of their martyrdoms prove the truth of their confident assertion:

While one heard thunder and one saw flame,
I only knew He called my name.
– AUTHOR UNKNOWN

Blind Eyes

Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him. – 1 Sam. 3:7

When the Holy Ghost becomes the Holy Guest, He opens the eyes of our understanding to understand the Scriptures. Without His aid the Bible is just literature, and some of it is dry and hopelessly uninteresting and not understandable literature. But when He removes the scales from our eyes and illuminates its pages, it becomes most precious. It is a new and living Book, in which God speaks to men in love, in promise, in precept, in types and symbols, in warning, rebuke, entreaty, and always in love, to save. It reveals God; it comforts, rebukes, inspires, convicts, converts, and rejoices the heart. It is “sharper than any two-edged sword, ” and proves itself to be a “discerner of the thoughts and intents [intentions and motives] of the heart. When the Holy Ghost becomes the Holy Guest in the yielded, welcoming heart, He dwells there ungrieved and with delight. “As the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, ” so He rejoices over that soul, while the soul has sweet, ennobling, purifying fellowship and communion with its Lord. He illuminates that soul; purifies, sanctifies, empowers it; instructs it, comforts it, protects it, adjusts it to all circumstances and crosses, and fits it for effective service, patient suffering, and willing sacrifice.

Silently now I wait for Thee,
Ready, my God, Thy will to see.
Open my eyes, illumine me,
Spirit divine!
– Charles H. Scott

Unshepherded Little Ones

Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not. – Luke 18:16

Was there ever a flock in which there were no lambs? If so, it was a flock doomed to speedy extinction. Are we not commanded to do with our might what our hands find to do? And do we not find multitudes of little ones unshepherded, unloved, untaught, and for whose tender little souls no man cares, nor prays, nor weeps before the Lord? Are there not multitudes of little hands stretched out toward us, saying, “Come, and help us”? Shall we wait till they are old in sin and hardened in wickedness and fixed in unholy habits and bondslaves of the devil before we work and plan and pray for them and seek their salvation? Is it possible that we have a call to the work of saving souls and yet have no commission for the children? No, no, no! To every worker who says to Jesus, “Lord, thou knowest that I love thee, ” in answer to His question, “Lovest thou me? Jesus says, “Feed my lambs. The worker may feel that he has no fitness, no tact, no skill, no gifts for that kind of work, but the commission lays upon him the responsibility to study and think and watch and pray and love and believe and work himself into fitness. By beginning with just such poor feeble, untrained gifts as he has and making the most of every opportunity, such fitness can surely be attained. By being diligent and faithful, by courage and pluck and good cheer and faith, and by seeking God’s blessing day by day, he can become an effective worker.

Gentle Jesus, meek and mild,
Look upon a little child,
Pity my simplicity,
Suffer me to come to Thee.
– CHARLES WESLEY

Walking with God

God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. – 1 Cor. 1:9

The man who wants power, just when it is most needed, must walk with God. He must be a friend of God. He must keep the way always open between his heart and God. God will be the Friend of such a man, and will bless him and honor him. God will tell him His secrets; He will show him how to get at the hearts of men. God will make dark things light, and crooked places straight, and rough places smooth for that man. God will be on his side and will help him. Such a man must keep a constant watch over his mouth and his heart. David prayed, “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips”; and Solomon said, “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life. He must walk in unbroken communion with God. He must not forget, but cultivate a spirit of joyful recollection by which he will be always conscious that he is in the presence of God. Delight thyself also in the Lord, ” said the Psalmist. Oh, how happy is that man who finds God to be his Delight; who is never lonely, because he knows God, talks with God, delights in God; who feels how lovable God is, and gives himself up to loving, serving, trusting God with all his heart.

He walks with God, who speaks to God in prayer,
And daily brings to Him his daily care;
Possessing inward peace, he truly knows
A heart’s refreshment, and a soul’s repose.
Ps. 141:3; Prov. 4:23; Ps. 37:4

A Bridge to God

There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Je sus. – 1 Tim. 2:5

One of the Army’s central doctrines and most valued and precious experiences is that of heart holiness. The bridge which the Army throws across the impassable gulf that separates the sinner from the Saviour – who pardons that He may purify, who saves that He may sanctify – rests upon these two abutments: the forgiveness of sins through simple, penitent, obedient faith in a crucified Redeemer, and the purifying of the heart and empowering of the soul through the anointing of the Holy Spirit, given by its risen and ascended Lord, and received not by works, but by faith. Remove either of these abutments and the bridge falls; preserve them in strength, and a world of lost and despairing sinners can be confidently invited and urged to come and be gloriously saved. The first abutment is deep grounded on such assurances as these: “There is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared”; and “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And the second firmly rests on such scriptures as these: “And God, who knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; and put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith”; “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin”; and “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.
” Ps. 130:4; 1 John 1:9; Acts 15:8-9; 1 John 1:7; Acts 1:8

The Great Challenge

Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go. – Acts 9:6

The call to holiness is the challenge of love. God loved us with a great and everlasting love, and with loving-kindness He is ever drawing us away from sin to himself. He has loved us out of our sins, and He would love us into holiness. It is the challenge of a great sacrifice. Jesus died to make men holy, and shall we frustrate the purpose for which He died? It is the challenge of a great cause calling for fit workers and soldiers – workers together with God. Good soldiers of the Lord. But how can we work together with God if we are not agreed with Him? How can we be good soldiers of Jesus if our hearts are not pure and aflame with loyalty to Him? The call to holiness is the wooing of a great Lover seeking to draw His loved one into perfect love and fellowship with himself. Holiness is love made perfect – love so filling the heart and mind and soul that sin is expelled and the great Lover is enthroned in peace and purity and power where sin had reigned. Finally, holiness is not attained by good works; it is obtained as a freely granted and accepted gift, by faith. It is not by growth; it is by separation unto Jesus and dedication of all we have and are to Him, in simple faith. It is not by death; it is by crucifixion of the old life. It is not by the flames of purgatory, but by the cleansing blood washing away all impurity, and the fire of the Holy Ghost refining all our redeemed and consecrated power. Refining fire, go through my heart.

Illuminate my soul.
Scatter Thy life through every part
And sanctify the whole.
– CHARLES WESLEY

They Are Only Lambs

All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children. – Isa. 54:13

The children should be noticed; and I am increasingly convinced that in every meeting where there are children present, something should be said that is suitable to them, and the invitation to come to Jesus should include them. You must be simple and make things very plain for the children. They do not know the meaning of many big words that you understand quite well; therefore you must take pains to make yourself understood. After we have done all, we must remember that they are only lambs, and not sheep; that they are growing children, not grown men and women; that they are in the formative state, tender and inexperienced. Life and the world are full of interest to them. They have personalities and individualities of their own, and are not always willing to take the simple word of their elders. Nor do they yield to admonition and instruction, but desire to prove their own powers and to taste and see all things for themselves. Therefore, it will be necessary not only to talk much to them about God, but to talk even more to God about them, and to depend upon the mighty, constant cooperation of the Holy Spirit in securing their salvation, and keeping them in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed Jesus, may our children
Bring their jewels to Thy throne,
Spending life, and strength, and talent
That Thy truth may be made known.
More than conquerors, let us see them
Marked, by loving, as Thine own.
– EMMA BOOTH-TUCKER

Be Ye Holy

And now what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes for thy good? – Deut. 10:12-13

We should be holy because God wants us to be holy. He commands it. He says: “As he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy. ” God is in earnest about this. It is God’s will, and it cannot be evaded. Just as a man wants his watch to keep perfect time, his gun to fire true, his friends to be steadfast, his children to be obedient, and his wife to be faithful, so God wants us to be holy. To many, however, the command seems harsh. They have been accustomed to commands accompanied by curses or kicks or blows. But we must not forget that “God is love, ” and His commands are not harsh but kind. They come from the fullness of an infinitely loving and all-wise heart. They are meant for our good. If a railway train could think or talk, it might argue that running on two rails over the same road year after year is very commonplace. But if it insisted on larger liberty and so jumped the track, it would certainly ruin itself. So the man who wants freedom and refuses to obey God’s commands to be holy, destroys himself. The train was made to run on the tracks, and so we were made to live according to God’s commandment, to be holy, and only in that way can we gain everlasting good.
1 Pet. 1:15-16

Sharp Axes

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. – Isa. 40:31

Do not get impatient. Do not try beforehand to find out what God will say, nor just how He will say it. He will surely teach you, but you must let Him do it in His own way. Then you will be able to help people with all the might and wisdom of Jehovah. You must trust His love, and you must abide His time; but you must wait on Him, and expect Him to teach you. If the king of England is coming to Windsor Castle, the servants do not lie around listlessly nor hunt up a lot of work to do; but everyone stands in his own place and waits with eager expectancy. This is what I mean by waiting upon God. This kind of taking care of your own soul you cannot do too much of, and do not let anyone drive you from it by ridicule or entreaty. The woodman would be very foolish who thought he had so much wood to cut that he could not take time to grind his axe. The servant would be useless who went to the city to buy things for his master, but was in such a hurry that he did not come to his master for orders and for the needed money. How much worse is he who attempts to do God’s work without God’s direction and God’s strength!

The Holy Guest

Ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. – John 14:17

A friend of mine said recently, “I like the term Holy Ghost, for the word ghost in the old Saxon was the same as the word for guest. ” Whether that be so or not, it may certainly be said that the Holy Ghost is the Holy Guest. He has come into the world and visits every heart, seeking admittance as a Guest. He has come to the soul unbidden, but He will not come in unbidden. He may be unwelcome. He may be refused admission and turned away. But He comes. He is in the world like Noah’s dove, looking for an abiding place. He comes as a Guest, but as an abiding one, if received. He forces himself upon no one. He waits for the open door and the invitation. He comes gently. He comes in love. He comes on a mission of infinite good will, or mercy and peace and helpfulness and joy. He is the Advocate of the Father and of the Son to us men. He represents and executes the redemptive plans and purposes of the Triune God. As my old teacher, Daniel Steele, wrote, “He is the Executive of the Godhead.

Our blest Redeemer, ere He breathed
His tender last farewell,
A Guide, a Comforter bequeathed
With us to dwell.
He came sweet influence to impart,
A gracious, willing Guest,
Where He can find one humble heart
Wherein to rest.
– HARRIET AUBER

Sowing and Reaping

Pray ye the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest. – Matt. 9:38

When young Adoniram Judson went, as the first American missionary, to Burma, he found a land covered with age-long growths of superstition and ignorance. For years he ploughed and sowed in hope. He struggled with difficulties of language and spiritual darkness. After seven years, with, as yet, no converts, he received a letter from a friend who asked him what the prospects were. He replied, “The prospects are as bright as the promises of God. Already the fields had whitened unto harvest, and shortly after he had written to his friend, he was reaping what he had sown – 30,000 souls were won to Jesus and organized for service. It is not often that a man sows in tears and reaps in joy, as Judson did. The ploughers and sowers often toil in hope, and yet must wait for the reapers who enter the fields and gather in the harvest upon which they themselves have bestowed no labor.

Oh, in the morning sow thy seed,
At eve stay not thy hand;
Though tears may fall, and hearts may bleed,
Obey thy Lord’s command. Part with thy best; unless it die
It must abide alone;
But God is pledged to multiply
Seed for His kingdom sown.
– RUTH TRACY

Praise Him with Song

I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. – 1 Cor. 14:15
The world owes an immeasurable debt to Christianity for its treasures of music and song. Jesus sang – oh, to have heard Him! And in his letters, especially to the Ephesians and Colossians, Paul exhorts the Christians to speak to themselves, “teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord, ” and “making melody in your heart to the Lord. ” They were to sing to be heard not of men only, but of the Lord himself. Every great revival of religion results in a revival of singing and of the composition of both music and song. The Franciscan revival in the thirteenth century was marked by exultant singing. And so it was in the days of Luther, of the Wesleys, of William Booth, and of Moody. And so it will always be. The joys, the faith, the hopes and aspirations, the deepest desires, the love and utter devotion, and the sweet trust of the Christian find noblest and freest expression in music and song.

I’ve found the Pearl of greatest price,
My heart doth sing for joy;
And sing I must, for Christ I have,
Oh, what a Christ have I!
– JOHN MASON

Trial of Faith

We glory in tribulations also, knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope. – Rom. 5:3-4

Our true good in this and all worlds is spiritual; and trials, afflictions, losses, sorrows, chastenings, borne with patience and courage and in faith, will surely develop in us spiritual graces and “the peaceable fruit of righteousness. These are never found in those who know no trial or sorrow, whose sky is never overcast, whose voyage over life’s sea is never troubled by storm and hurricane, we soldiering is only on dress parade and never in deadly battle, or who, facing storm or battle, flee away and so escape it. Holiness of heart does not insure us against those untoward and painful things which try our faith, but it does prepare us for the trial. At the same time, the patient endurance of trial reveals to ourselves, to angels, to devils, to men, the reality of our faith and the purity and integrity of our hearts and the grace and faithfulness of our Lord. When Abraham was tried in the offering up of Isaac, “The angel of the Lord” said, “Now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. ” And again and again the most obstinate opponents of Christianity have been conquered by the patient endurance and the radiant joy of suffering Christians. It was not only so in the days of far-off persecutions – in Rome, when Christians were thrown to the wild beasts, roasted over slow fires, tortured in every conceivable way – but in our own day, the blood of the martyrs, the patience and triumphant joy of faithful Christians, have won the hardest sinners to Jesus.
Heb. 12:11; Gen. 22:12

Greater Things

He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. – John 14:12

All the lovers of Jesus should in these days seek fresh renewings and a greater fullness of the Holy Spirit. They should study what the Bible says about Him as a Person. He is not a mere influence, passing over us like a wind or warming us like a fire. He is a Person, seeking entrance into our hearts that He may comfort us, instruct us, empower us, guide us, give us heavenly wisdom, and fit us for holy and triumphant service. If we will seek His presence and yield ourselves to Him in secret prayer, He will make the Bible a new Book to us. He will make Jesus precious to us; He will make God the Father ever real to us. We “shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. We shall not be weak in the presence of duty or temptation, but “strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. ” We shall be “ready to every good work. I suggest to all my readers that by way of preparation they prayerfully and carefully study what Jesus says of the Holy Spirit, “the Comforter, ” in John 14; 15; and 16; and in the Acts of the Apostles, which in many respects might be called the Acts of the Holy Ghost. Read and reread these passages again and again, and ponder them in faith and prayer. God has greater things for us and all His people than the world has ever yet seen, if we but believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and permit the Spirit to lead us.
John 8:12; Eph. 6:10; Titus 3:1

Ebb Tides

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. – 1 Cor. 15:58

Do not think when the tide flows out to “low water mark” that the Comforter has left you. I remember well how, after I was sanctified, I had joy and glory that was almost too much for my body to bear. Then the joy began to subside, and there would be alternate days of joy and peace. On the days when there was no special experience, the devil would tempt me with the thought that I had in some way grieved the Holy Spirit, and that He was leaving me. But God taught me it was the devil’s lie, and that I must “hold fast the profession of … [my] faith, without wavering. So I may say to you, Do not think He has left you because you are not overflowing with emotion. Hold fast your faith. He is with you and, after the hard time He has had to get fully into your heart, will not leave you without first letting you know just why He goes. The Holy Spirit is not capricious and fickle. He has to strive long to get into your heart, and He will strive long before He will leave it, unless you wilfully harden your heart and drive Him from you.

My faith holds fast on Thee;
My faith still small, but sure,
Its anchor holds alone to Thee,
Whose presence keeps me pure.
And Thou, all–conquering Lord,
Always to see and hear,
By night, by day, art ever near,
Art ever near to me.
– BRAMWELL BOOTH

Youth’s Response

Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them. – Eccles. 12:1

It is to share in all the sacrificial service, in joy and sorrow, in pain and weariness, and to boldly witness, even unto martyrdom, and to final triumph that God is calling youth always and everywhere. But before He calls youth to share in such high enterprise, He calls them to repentance, to separation, to heart purity. They are to be partakers not simply in His work and warfare, but of His nature, His love, and His Spirit – His holiness. And to those who hear His call and open the door, He comes in and enlightens, transforms, purifies, sanctifies, and empowers. The call to holiness comes with special appeal to youth, and from youth it has had its most generous and fruitful response. It came to Joseph in Egypt, to Joshua, Samuel, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, John, and Paul, when they were but boys and young men. It came to Francis of Assisi as a boy, to Savonarola and Luther, to Fox and Wesley, and his young Oxford friends, who lifted the moral life of England, purified the spiritual atmosphere of the world, and modified the course of history. It came to Jonathan Edwards, and 15-year-old William Booth who founded The Salvation Army, which in the beginning was an Army of young enthusiasts and to this day is largely officered by youths and striplings. And it came to the great exemplars and leaders of the holiness movement in America and all lands. It came to them and found glad and full response when they were but youths.

Saviour, while my heart is tender,
I would yield that heart to Thee;

Strength in Weakness

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. – Ps. 46:1

These 10 years have been wonderful. God has become my Teacher, my Guide, my Counselor, my All and in all. He has allowed me to be perplexed and tempted, but it has been for my good. I have no complaint to make against Him. Sometimes it has seemed that He had left me alone, but it has been as the mother who stands away from her little child to teach it to use its own legs that it may walk. He has not suffered me to fall. He has been with my mouth, and helped me to speak of Jesus and His great salvation in a way to instruct and comfort and save other souls. He has been Light to my darkness, Strength to my weakness, Wisdom in my foolishness, Knowledge in my ignorance. When my way has been hedged up, and it seemed that no way could be found out of my temptations and difficulties, He has cut a way through for me, just as He opened the Red Sea for Israel. When my heart ached, He has comforted me; when my feet had well-nigh slipped, He has held me up; when my faith has trembled, He has encouraged me; when I have been in sore need, He has supplied all my need; when I have been hungry, He has fed me; when I have thirsted, He has given me living water.

He cannot forget me, though trials beset me,
Forever His promise shall stand;
He cannot forget me, though trials beset me,
My name’s on the palm of His hand.

The Way of Victory

We love him, because he first loved us. – 1 John 4:19

I wish I knew the secret of Paul’s piety, ” said that good man, Asa Mahan, to Mr. Finney one day. Paul said, ‘The love of Christ constraineth us. ‘” Just then the glorious truth burst upon his mind that we are sanctified not by works but by faith which works by love. The religion of Jesus, he realized, is not one of vows and resolutions, and terrible struggle and effort, but of life and power and joyous love. He went out of Finney’s room, saying, “I see it, I see it! And from that hour his life was one of triumphant holiness. Oh, that all men would see this – that the way of holiness is a “new and living way, ” not an old, dead, tiresome, heartaching, heartbreaking way of forms and ceremonies that leaves the soul still baffled and unsatisfied and with a sense of failure and defeat! It is a way of victory and joy. The simple secret of this “new and living way” is the constraining love of Christ. When we realize that He loves us and died for us, and that He wants a service of love, and then give ourselves up heartily, in faith, to such a love service, the secret becomes ours.

O Love, who formedst me to wear
The image of Thy Godhead here,
Who soughtest me with tender care
Through all my wanderings wild and drear:
O Love, I give myself to Thee,
Thine ever, only Thine to be.
– JOHANN SCHEFFLER
(tr. Catherine Winkworth)

He Will Come

The vision is yet for an appointed time though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come. – Hab. 2:3

Against the entire sanctification of believers Satan brings to bear all his devices, his sophisticated arguments, and the full force of his powerful will. But the resolute soul, determined to be all the Lord’s, will find him a conquered foe, with no power but to deceive. The way to surely overcome him is to will to steadfastly believe and agree with God, in spite of all Satan’s suggested doubts. Abraham took certain beasts and birds and offered them to God. But after he had made the offering, and while he was waiting for the witness of God’s acceptance, birds of prey came to snatch away the sacrifice. Abraham drove them away. This continued until the evening, and then the fire of God consumed the offering. Just so, he who would be entirely sanctified must make an unreserved offering of himself to God. This act must be real, not imaginary – a real transfer of self, with all hopes, plans, prospects, property, powers, of body and mind; time, cares, burdens, joys, sorrows, reputation; friend of God in a “perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten. When he has thus given himself to God, to be anything or nothing, go anywhere or stay anywhere for Jesus, he must, like Abraham, patiently, trustingly, expectantly wait for God to witness that he is accepted.
Jer. 50:5

He Has Promised

Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. – Rev. 1:5-6

Toil on, O my soul! If thou labor for Him, thou shalt also reap with Him. He is not unrighteous to forget thy work and labor of love, and He will not fail to reward abundantly thy patience of hope. Thy labor is not in vain in the Lord. If thou art called to suffer with Him, O my soul, count it all joy. Do not repine. Fear not. Faint not. Thou shalt reign with Him. He has so promised. And He will remember, He will not forget His own word upon which He has caused thee to hope. If thou dost love Him who died for thee, who entrusts His honor and His cause to thee, prove thy love, O my soul, by feeding and watching over His lambs and sheep. Love thy comrades as He has loved thee; and as He laid down His life for thee, so, if needs be, lay down thy life for the brethren, and so shall all men know that thou art His disciple. And He shall see of the travail of His soul for thee and be satisfied. And when the days and hours of the time are no more, then eternity, eternity with Him, my Redeemer, Lover, Friend in the glory that excelleth and that hath no end.

From all self and sin deliver,
With Thy nature make us good;
Make us kings and priests forever,
Wash our garments in Thy blood.
–LILIAN WATKINS

Goodness and Greatness

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance… If we live in the Spirit, let us

also walk in the Spirit. – Gal. 5:22-25
The baptism with the Holy Ghost is for power for service! so many people think and say. And so it is. But it is for far more! The baptism does reinforce and empower the soul. The man or woman who is baptized with the Spirit is “endued with power from on high, ” and has a spiritual energy and effectiveness which are not of this world. Their lives and their words take on a strange, new influence and power which come from the active cooperation of an unseen Guest, a holy and divine presence abiding in love within them. This fits them for the service of their Lord. But service is not the whole purpose of man’s being. What a man is, is more important than what he does. Goodness is better than greatness. A man may do much and make a great name for himself and end in hell; but a good man, who loves God and his fellowmen, though he may not be known beyond the street in which he lives, is on the way to heaven and is well known up there. There are those who are first who shall be last; and there are last who shall he first.

I want the witness, Lord,
That all I do is right;
According to Thy will and word,
Well pleasing in Thy sight.
– CHARLES WESLEY

The Abiding Glory

The glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one. – John 17:22

The religion of Jesus is social. It is inclusive, not exclusive. We can have the glory only as we are united. We must he one in spirit with our brethren. Let division come, and the glory departs. Let the unity of brotherly love continue, and the glory abides. O my comrades, let us beware of the leakage of love, of the loss of the spirit of unity, of the subtlety and snare and death of the spirit, of distrust, and division! I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. In this world the disciples of Jesus are the home of God, and that home is to be filled with sweet accord, not discord. He wants us to be “perfect in one, ” so that the world – the poor, proud, foolish, wicked world – shall not only believe, but know that Jesus was the sent of the Father, and that the love of the Father is outpoured upon His disciples as it was upon himself. What responsibility this places upon us to foster the unity of the Spirit and to beware of the pride and jealousy and envy and suspicion and unholy spirit of lordship that leads to division. Let us be content to wash each other’s feet and be ambitious only to be servants of all.

One with my Lord! ’tis glorious to know
The barriers are broken and gone;
Wherever He leadeth there gladly I’ll go,
For Jesus and I are at one.
– HERBERT H. BOOTH, alt.
John 17:23

He Has a Program

Stand fast therefore in the liberty where – with Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. – Gal. 5:1

The hope of the world is in Christian youth who know Jesus, who love God, whose eyes are wide open to the truth as it is in Christ, and who “follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. They are the “salt of the earth. If the world is not to plunge into the abyss of the Dark Ages once again, and I do not believe it has or will, the youth are and must be the “light of the world. And this light must be, not dimmed and shaded light, but bright and clear as the morning. This will not, cannot be unless youth who name the name of Christ “depart from iniquity” and are holy. He calls them unto holiness, not unto uncleanness. He prayed on earth and ever intercedes in heaven that they may be sanctified – that is, made holy. He calls them to be good soldiers, counting not their lives dear unto themselves, but to be ready to lay down their lives for His sake, and for the sake of the lost ones who are dear to Him and for whom He died. He calls them to lofty endeavor, high adventure, supreme sacrifice, uttermost devotion. He himself has gone before, and now goes with all who will go with Him. He has a program. He is not a muddled, uncertain leader. He knows where he is going – to war with “principalities, and powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world. His goal is ultimate victory – the overthrow of the foolish and abominable idolatries; torturing superstitions; political, ecclesiastic, economic, and social despotisms; every debasing, shameful, enslaving vice; and every proud and haughty thing that would exalt itself against the knowledge of God and His Christ. And when victory is won, he is going home to the throne and to a universal dominion of righteousness, holiness, love, joy, and peace forevermore. Hallelujah!
Rev. 14:4; Matt. 5:13-14; 2 Tim. 2:19; Eph. 6:12

A Surprise Commission

Lovest thou me? … Feed my lambs. – John 21:15

Rough and ready Peter, that horny-handed old fisherman, thought he was cut out for and best fitted to be a prime minister, or secretary of state, a bishop, a colonel, or a commander; and it seems he had several disputes with the other disciples as to whether he should not be the greatest among them. How big must have been his surprise then, when he got his commission from Jesus as a junior worker and received orders to feed the lambs! What a mighty argument he could have made to prove that he was not fitted for work with the children! To be sure, he had at least one boy of his own, and maybe several others. But then, he was a fisherman, and the care of the children was left to his wife. In fact, he had no fitness either by nature or training for that kind of work. All his associations had been with the big, burly men of the sea, and what did he know about talking to children? But when Jesus, with infinite knowledge and wisdom and tenderness, looked straight into his eyes and asked him that searching question, “Lovest thou me more than these? ” and then in reply to Peter’s answer, “Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee, ” said, “Feed my lambs, ” what could Peter say? So Peter was first commissioned to be a junior worker. But, ” you say, “did not Jesus mean young converts when He said, ‘My lambs, ‘ and might they not be men and women who were only newly converted? True, it is probable that Jesus meant new converts, but new converts include children, for the children are often converted too, and did not Jesus say, “Of such is the kingdom of heaven? So any way we may explain the text, we cannot escape the fact that Peter was commanded to work with and for the children. And, if Peter, why not you and me?
John 21:15; Matt. 19:14

Sanctified Unity

Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; that they all may be one. – John 17:20-21

Jesus prayed, “Sanctify them. Set them apart, consecrate them to thyself and to Thy service. Seal them and make them holy. Not only “keep them from the evil” that is in the world, but save them from the evil and corruption that is in their own hearts. Make them clean. Refine them as with fire. Purify them until no spot of sin remains upon them, until they are “all glorious within. “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. Let Thy truth search them till they are wholly conformed to Thy nature and Thy will, until their lives match Thy truth, and in them the truth lives incarnate, walks among men. Not for these alone, however, did He pray, but for all who should through their word believe on Him. His thought was girdling the globe and embracing the ages. Wherever and whenever a penitent, trembling soul believes on Him through their word, that soul comes within the desire and purpose of this prayer. He wanted them all to be one, bound up in one bundle of life – one as He and the Father are one, that they might be the habitation of God upon earth, and that the world, seeing this, might believe on Him. Faith in Him depended on the brotherly love and unity of His disciples. So it did, and so it does to this day. When there is unity, there is faith. Where there is division, there is doubt. Thousands believed, and a multitude of priests were obedient to the faith after Pentecost, when the disciples were filled with the Holy Ghost and were of one mind and heart. But when this unity of faith and love was lost, the Dark Ages followed. Darkness and unbelief always follow loss of love and unity.
John 17:15-17; Ps. 45:13.

Overcomers

Let us hold fast the profession of our faith, without wavering. – Heb. 10:23
What shall the sanctified man do to overcome the devil? Listen to what Peter says: “Be sober, be vigilant [keep your eyes open]; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith. ” Hear James: “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Listen to Paul: “Fight the good fight of faith. “The just shall live by faith. ” “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. ” And John: “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. ” “And they overcame him [the devil, the accuser of the brethren] by the blood of the Lamb [in which blood they had childlike faith] and by the word of their testimony [for if a man will not testify, his faith will soon die], and they loved not their lives unto the death [they obeyed God at all costs, and denied themselves to the uttermost]. “

Here, Lord, I yield Thee the whole of my heart;
From all that hinders at last I will part;
Humbly my all at Thy feet now I lay,
Trusting and fighting till life’s latest day.
Victory for me!
– WILLIAM BOOTH
1 Pet. 5:8–9; Jas. 4:7; 1 Tim. 6:12; Rom. 1:17; Eph. 6:16; 1 John 5:4; Rev. 12:11

Make Me Clean

Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. – Ps. 51:2-3
The Holy Ghost convicts of righteousness. We no longer justify ourselves and condemn God. Our mouths are stopped. We see that God is true and righteous altogether, and in the presence of His holiness and righteousness, all our righteousness is seen to be as filthy rags. We can only cry, as did the leper, “Unclean, I am unclean; oh, make me clean! “If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean! And then we see that Christ Jesus was “wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed”; that He “bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness”; that He “suffered for sins, the just for the unjust”; that God “hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin”; that we might be able joyfully to sing:

O Love, Thou bottomless abyss,
My sins are swallowed up in Thee!
Covered is my unrighteousness,
Nor spot of guilt remains on me,
While Jesus’ blood, through earth and skies,
Mercy, free, boundless mercy, cries.
– JOHANN ANDREAS ROTHE
(tr. John Wesley)
Mark 1:40; Isa. 53:5; 1 Pet. 2:24; 3:18; 2 Cor. 5:2

Life and Death

Unto the angel [officer, pastor] of the church in Sardis write; . . . I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. – Rev. 3:1

Among the grimmest words in all the Bible are these of the risen Jesus to John on Patmos. A dead shepherd of the sheep! A dead watchman of the city! A dead teacher of the unlearned! A dead nurse of little children! A dead physician of souls! A dead ambassador of heaven! Dead! Moving about, but dead! Occupying an important place, and so excluding another who might fulfill its functions, but dead! Having the reputation of being alive, but dead! What could be sadder; what so ghastly? But over against this spiritually dead preacher was Paul. He was alive – all alive; throbbing, pulsing, eager, and alert; full of divine, eternal life. The most conspicuous among all the wonderful traits of Paul was his robust, abounding spiritual life! This is life eternal, ” said Jesus, “that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. If this is life, and life eternal, then Paul had it. “God is not in all his thoughts, ” wrote the Psalmist of the wicked. But God was in all Paul’s thoughts. Paul knew God. God, whose I am, and whom I serve, ” he said, on the deck of the doomed ship. Paul knew Jesus Christ, whom God had sent. Christ filled the whole heaven of his soul. Eleven times he mentioned Jesus Christ by name in the first chapter of Ephesians, and about every verse enshrines his Lord. That is the greatest wonder of Paul’s letters – they enshrine and enthrone Christ. Cut out the name of Jesus, and His titles and the pronouns referring to Him, and you would so mutilate every chapter and almost every verse in Paul’s letters and leave them so mangled as to be wholly unintelligible. Christ was his meat, and Christ was his drink. He lived by Christ. He lived for Christ. He lived in Christ, and Christ lived in him. He lived Christ. Listen: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

” John 17:3; Ps. 10:4; Acts 28:23; Gal. 2:21

The Secret Is Prayer

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunt o with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. – Eph. 6:18
Before joining the Salvation Army, I was one day talking with Dr. Cullis, of Boston, that man of simple, wonder working faith. He was showing me some photographs, and among them was one of Bramwell Booth. There, ” said the doctor, “that man leads the mightiest holiness meetings in all England. ” He then told me about those famous Whitechapel meetings. When I went to England, I determined, if possible, to find out the secret of them. “For one thing, ” said an officer, “Mr. Bramwell used to conduct young men’s meetings at Headquarters at that time and would ask each saved young fellow to spend five minutes alone with God every day, wherever he could get it, praying for those Friday night meetings. One, who is a brigadier now, and was then employed in a large warehouse, had to squeeze himself into a large, wicker packing case to get a chance to pray for five minutes. “

Prayer makes the darkest cloud withdraw,
Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw,
Gives exercise to faith and love,
Brings every blessing from above.
–WILLIAM COWPER

Kept in the Midst of Evil

I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. – John 17:15

He prays for His disciples whom the Father had given Him, prays that they may be kept from the evil that is in the world. While He was with them in the world, He had kept them. The Lord God is a sun and a shield. ” He had been their Sun. He had lightened their way, and they had walked in His light and had not stumbled out of the way. He was their Shield. He had defended them against wily men and yet more wily devils. No enemy had been able to pluck out of His hand any save Judas, who sold himself to the evil one for a handful of silver. But now He was leaving them, and they would be exposed to the wiles of the evil one, who would subtly approach them as an “angel of light” or rush upon and assail them “as a roaring lion. ” He would make battle against them like ancient archers with fiery darts of accusation, of doubts and fears and perplexities. And they would be beset by the relentless hostility of the world. The bigotry and hate of the Jews, the proud scorn and fierce persecutions of cruel and idolatrous nations, would be poured out upon them. They were as sheep in the midst of wolves. Great and constant would be their danger, measureless would be their need; therefore He prays, “Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. ” He does not pray that they may be caught up out of the world and away from the evil, but that in the midst of it they may be kept through His name. The name of the God of Jacob defend thee, ” prayed the Psalmist. The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runneth into it, and is safe, ” said Solomon.

O Thou God of all,
Hear us when we call,
Help us one and all
By Thy grace!
– WILLIAM FISK SHERWIN
Ps. 84:11; 2 Cor. 11:14; 1 Pet. 5:8; John 17:11; Ps. 20:1; Prov. 18:10

The Recipe for Holy People

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. – Matt. 4:4

John Wesley, in his old age, after having read and read and reread the Bible all his life, said of himself: “I am a man of one Book. The truth will surely slip, if you do not refresh your mind constantly by reading the Bible and meditating. The Bible is God’s Recipe for making holy people. You must follow the Recipe exactly if you want to be a holy, Christlike person. The Bible is God’s Guidebook to show men and women the way to heaven. You must pay strict attention to its directions and follow them accurately if you are ever to get there. The Bible is God’s Doctor Book, to show people how to get rid of soul sickness. You must diligently consider its diagnosis of soul diseases and its methods of cure if you want soul health. Jesus said, “The words I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life. “

Lamp of our feet, whereby we trace
Our path when wont to stray,
Stream from the fount of heavenly grace,
Brook by the traveler’s way;
Word of the ever–living God,
Will of His glorious Son,
Without thee how could earth be trod,
Or heaven itself be won?
Lord, grant that we aright may learn
The wisdom it imparts

A Universal Need

I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh … and on my servants and on my handmaIdens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit. – Acts 2:17-18

The baptism of the Holy Ghost is to bring us into union with Christ, into loving fellowship with the Heavenly Father, to fit us snugly into God’s great, complex scheme of life, and equip us for such service or sacrifice as falls to our lot. The busy housewife, the burdened mother, the toiler in mine or factory, on farm or train, or shipboard, the clerk at his desk, the merchant prince, the bootblack and the prime minister, the king and the president, the school boy and girl – each needs the Pentecostal blessing for daily life and duty, as much as does the captain of a Salvation Army corps, the missionary in India or Africa, the general of The Salvation Army, or the archbishop of Canterbury, if they are to live worthy lives that shall glorify God and do their work in a spirit well pleasing to Him. We each and all need the blessing of Pentecost, not simply for service, but for holy, worthy living. We must have the perfecting and completing of character from which will flow influences which often are more effective than the busy activity which we call service.

All who seek this cleansing river
Have their deepest need supplied;
From all ills its waves deliver
When for healing they’re applied.
– RICHARD SLATER

Confidence

We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. – Rom. 8:28

Paul says, “We know” – his uncertainties, doubts, fears, and questionings had all vanished, being swallowed up in knowledge – “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God. ” But how did he know? How had Paul reached such happy assurance? He knew by faith. He believed God, and light on dark problems streamed into his soul, through faith. He knew by joyful union with the risen Christ, who had conquered death and the grave. This union was so real that Christ’s victory was his victory also. He knew in part by experience. Paul had suffered much, and by experience he had found all things in the past working for his good, enriching his spiritual life through the abounding grace of his Lord; and this gave him assurance for “all things” and for all the future. Nothing could really harm him while he was in the divine will – in the eternal order – while he was a branch on the Living Vine and a member of Christ’s body. Listen to him: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? … Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. ” Rom. 8:35, 37

The Divine Intercessor

I pray for them… which thou has given me; for they are thine. – John 17:9

It was the zero hour of the moral world, of the spiritual universe – the zero hour in the great battle for the souls of men. It was the hour when our Kinsman-Redeemer was to “go over the top, ” go over alone, “for of the people there was none with me [Him] – go over and die, die for us, die that we might live and never die. It was the hour of His utter humiliation when all His glory was stripped from Him and laid aside. He who knew no sin was being made sin for us, and “numbered with the transgressors, ” “wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, ” chastened for our peace, and stricken that we might be healed. Step by step He descended from infinite heights of glory and honor and power to infinite depths of weakness and reproach and shame. He, the infinitely pure and innocent One, came and united himself with us as a man and stood in our place, and took upon himself our guilt, our sin, our shame, our curse. “He was made a curse for us. ” “He hath made him to be sin for us. ” He emptied himself of His divine, eternal majesty and “took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men, and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. ” This was the hour to which He had looked, to which He had at last come, and for the agony, the loneliness, the shame of which He was now, and had been from the beginning, girding himself. But before the dread and awful stroke of this hour fell upon Him, His thoughts turned to His poor, ignorant, weak, imperfect disciples. With a love that knew no bounds, He forgot self, forgot the shame and agony soon to be poured out upon Him without stint like an ocean flood. He even At The Center Of The Circle – The Divine Intercessor 2 forgot, or for a time ignored, the glory so soon to follow on His return to the bosom of the Father and the bliss of heaven. There He remembered them and prayed for them.
Isa. 63:3; 53:12, 5; Gal. 3:30; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 2:7–8.

Emblem of Eternity

O Lord, how manifold are thy works! … the earth is full of thy riches. So is this great and wide sea. – Ps. 104:24-25

Thou wrinkled sea, so gray and old,
Thou laughing sea, so young and bold,
Thou sunny sea, so bright and warm,
Thou raging sea, so dark with storm,
Thou careless sea, so wild and free,
Thou carest not for mine nor me.
I love and fear thee, O thou sea;
I love the thunder of thy surges,
And I fancy solemn dirges
Mingle with the mighty roar
Of thy breakers on the shore
Which forever beat and roll
Like the pulses of the soul,
Stirring thoughts too swift for word,
Hinting music never heard,
Thrilling all this heart of mine
With the breath of things divine.
I fear thee, O thou treacherous sea,
I love thee, O thou radiant sea –
Emblem of eternity!

God in His Handiwork

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. – Ps. 19:1-2
In my 40 years of intimate communion with Paul, I have never once been inspired by him to look for the blinding glories of the passing days and seasons, or the pomp and splendor of starlit nights. But not so when I turn to Job, to the Psalms of David, the Proverbs, and songs of Solomon, and the sweet talks and parables of Jesus. There we see the sparrows feeding from the Heavenly Father’s hand; the ravens and the young lions and every creeping thing looking to Him for daily food; the fox fleeing from enemies to his hole; the conies among the rocks; the wild goat among mountain crags; the nesting bird, the busy ant, the swarming bees, the neighing warhorse, the spouting whale, the bridal lilies, the rose of Sharon; green and smiling meadows, still waters, ice, snow, hoar frost, and glowing fire; tempestuous wind and billowing seas; the lowering sky of the morning threatening rain and storm; the red sky of evening presaging fair and smiling weather. The vast deeps of the heavens are the tabernacle of the sun, “which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. That race course compasses the whole circle of heaven, and the whole creation in one vast antiphonal choral harmony praises God. So David sings. But the suggestions, and beauty, and wonder, and mysticism in nature to which Paul has never turned me, but to which Jesus, and Job, and David, and Solomon pointed me, I am now finding in large measure in my tiny backyard.

Ps. 19:5

Try Again

The Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if ye return unto him. – 2 Chron. 30:9 Rev.

John Fletcher, who Mr. Wesley thought was the holiest man who had lived since the days of the Apostle John, lost the blessing five times before he was finally established in the grace of holiness. Mr. Wesley declared that he was persuaded, from his observation, that people usually lose the blessing several times before they learn the secret of keeping it. So, if anyone who reads this has lost the blessing, and is tormented by the old enemy of souls – the devil – with the thought that you can never get and keep it, let me urge you to try again, and again, and again. You prove your real desire and purpose to be holy, not by giving up in the presence of defeat, but by rising from 10,000 falls, and going at it again with renewed faith and consecration. If you do this, you shall surely win the prize and be able to keep it in the end.

The promise is: “Seek, and ye shall find.”
“But how long shall I seek?”
Seek till you find!
“But suppose I lose it?”

Seek again till you find it. God will surprise you someday by pouring out such a full baptism of His Spirit upon you that all your darkness, and doubts, and uncertainty will vanish forever. You will never fall again, and God’s smile will be no more withdrawn, and your sun will never more go down. Matt. 7:7

On the Fence

He that is not with me is against me. – Matt. 12:30

The other day, a lady said to me: “I have always hesitated to say, ‘The Lord sanctifies me wholly’; but not until recently did I see the reason. I now see that I secretly desired a bridge behind me so that I might escape back from my position without injury to myself. If I profess sanctification, I must be careful lest I bring myself into disrepute. If I do not profess it, I can do questionable things and then shield myself by saying, ‘I do not profess to be perfect. ‘” Ah, that is the secret! Be careful, dear reader, or you will become a religious fence rider. And the devil will get you, for all who are astride the fence are really on the devil’s side. Get away over on God’s side by a definite professing of your faith. But the devil will say: “You had better not say anything about this till you find out whether you will be able to keep it. Be careful lest you do more harm than good. Drive that bird of prey away quickly, or all you have done thus far will be of no avail. That bird has devoured tens of thousands of offerings just as honestly made as yours. You are not to “keep the blessing” at all, but you are to boldly assert your faith in the Blesser, and He will keep you.

Launch out into the deep;
Oh, let the shorelines go.
Launch out, launch out in the ocean divine,
Out where the full tides flow.
– A.B. SIMPSON

Stability

Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. – 1 Cor. 16:13

Before Peter got this great blessing, he was filled with presumption one day and with fear the next. One night he declared that “though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. ” Shortly after, when the mob came to take his Master, he boldly attacked them with the sword. But early next morning, when his blood had cooled a little and the excitement was over, he got so frightened by a little girl that he cursed and swore, and denied his Master three times. He was like a good many soldiers who are tremendously brave when there is a “big go” but have no moral courage to wear the uniform alone in their shop where they have to face the scorn of their mates and the jeers of the street urchin. These are soldiers who love dress parade but do not want hard fighting at the front of the battle. But Peter got over that on the Day of Pentecost. He received the power of the Holy Ghost coming into him. He got a clean heart, from which perfect love had cast out all fear. When shut in prison for preaching on the street, and commanded by the supreme court of the land not to do so anymore, he boldly answered, “Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. “

Am I the one to go
Where all is big and bright?
Or have I lost the zeal I knew
To share the hardest fight?

Matt. 26:33; Acts 4:19-20

Crucified with Christ

I am Crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. – Gal. 2:20

The divine life in Paul was manifest in his triumph over circumstances. They threw him into prison and he converted the jailer. They stoned him and threw him on a pile of city refuse for dead; but, by and by, with a deep sigh, a gasp, and a struggle, he arose. He went back to the city to comfort the disciples and then passed on to other scenes of labor and suffering. Three times the Romans beat him with rods. Five times the Jews stripped bare his back and beat him with 39 stripes – all the law would allow. Three times he suffered shipwreck. A night and a day he clung to a spar of a wrecked ship while the wild waters raged and threatened to engulf him. He was hungry and cold and naked and thirsty, while salt waters billowed around him. His own countrymen traduced him. False brethren betrayed him. He had no home, no wife, and no child to comfort him. Robbers in the Macedonian hills and the Cilician mountains made dangerous his missionary journeys. His life was so constantly endangered that he said, “I die daily. ” But he was not embittered – not daunted. He was full of courage and of deep and quiet peace which often leaped up into exultant joy. He gloried in his tribulations. I would ask him: “Paul, Paul, how did you endure it all? What, oh, what is your secret? Tell me. ” And he would reply, “I am ‘less than the least of all saints. ‘ I am not worthy to be called an apostle. I was a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious, but I obtained mercy …. The grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love. I am the chief of sinners. But ‘for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all long suffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. “Christ died for me, and now the love of Christ constrains me, and I rejoice in my sufferings, and ‘fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ, ‘ for the sake of His Church, my brethren.

My whole secret is this: ‘I am crucified with Christ.'”
Eph. 3:8; 1 Tim. 1:13–14, 16; Col. 1:24

The Temple of God

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. – 3 John 2

Athletes, football and cricket players, and prizefighters, when in training, are exceedingly careful about their health. They select their food with care and eat nothing that would disagree with them. They abstain from strong drink and tobacco. They go to bed and get up at regular hours. And, of course, they have plenty of fresh air and systematic exercise. This they do for months and sometimes years, simply that they may beat some other fellows in contests of strength and skill. “Now they do it, ” says Paul, “to obtain a corruptible crown: but we an incorruptible. ‘ And then he adds “I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. ‘ Young people are likely to squander their health in all sorts of useless and careless ways, and are tempted to laugh at their elders when they lift a warning voice. But they will someday find that advance in holiness, progress toward heaven, and happiness and usefulness, are more dependent on the right care of the body than they supposed.

I would be Thy holy temple,
Sacred and indwelt by Thee;
Naught then could stain my commission,
‘Tis Thy divine charge to me.
Time, health, and talents presenting,
All that I have shall be Thine;
Heart, mind, and will consecrating,
No longer shall they be mine.
– BRINDLEY BOON
1 Cor. 9:25, 27

The Illuminated Word

1 The Illuminated Word The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life. – John 6:63

The reason why people get mixed up over the Bible is because they have not the Holy Spirit to show them the meaning. A young or humble Christian who is full of the Holy Ghost, can tell more about the real, deep, spiritual meaning of the Bible than all the doctors of divinity and theological professors in the world who are not baptized with the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost will make you love your Bible; and you will say with Job, “I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food”; and with the Psalmist you will declare His words to be “sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. No book or paper can take its place; but, like the “blessed” man, you will “meditate day and night” in it. He will make you tremble at the warnings of God’s Word, exult in His promises, and take delight in the commandments. You can be satisfied with nothing less than the whole Bible, and you will say with Jesus, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. “

The Spirit breathes upon the Word,
And brings the truth to sight;
Precepts and promises afford
A sanctifying light.
– WILLIAM COWPER
Job 23:12; Ps. 19:10; 1:2; Matt. 4:4

Loyalty

Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy. – Rev. 3:4

The other day, I went to a poor little Salvation Army corps where nearly everything had been going wrong. Many were cold and discouraged. But I found one sister with a wondrous glory in her face and glad, sweet praises in her mouth. She told me how she had looked at others falling around her, had seen the carelessness of many, and noted the decline of vital piety in the corps, until her heart ached and she felt disheartened, and her feet almost slipped. But she went to God, and got down low before Him, and prayed and waited until He drew near her and showed her the awful precipice on which she herself was standing. He showed her that her one business was to follow Jesus, to walk before Him with a perfect heart, and to cleave to Him though the whole corps backslide. Then she confessed all that God showed her; confessed how near she had come to joining the great army of backsliders herself through looking at others. She humbled herself before Him and renewed her covenant until an unutterable joy came to her heart. God put His fear in her soul and filled her with the glory of His presence. She told me, further, that the next day she fairly trembled to think of the awful danger she had been in, and declared that that time of waiting on God in the silence of the night saved her. Her heart was now filled with the full assurance of hope for herself, and not only for herself, but also for the corps. Oh, for 10,000 such soldiers!

Radiance and Thorns

Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer. – Rom. 12:12

One day Paul was praying for the third time for deliverance from a tormenting bodily affliction, “a thorn in the flesh, ” when he heard the voice of his Lord whispering, “‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. ‘ No, Paul, I will not remove the thorn, but I will give you grace to endure, to conquer in spite of it. And when people see you radiant and triumphant in your weakness, then you will confess the presence of the Divine in your life, and give glory to Me. And Paul was so content with his Master’s will, so eager to bring glory to Jesus, that he blessed that thorn, and cried out, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. On another day he was praying and communing with his Lord, when suddenly he found himself caught up into some ineffable fellowship. He says it was the third heaven, into paradise, where he heard words not lawful, not possible, to utter. Paul was alive in Christ! He had ears to hear, and he heard. He had eyes to see, and he saw.

Sanctify Thy name, O Lord,
By Thy people here;
For the altar or the sword
Save us from our fear!
When the battle rages fast,
Help us in the fiery blast,
Let us not be overcast,
Prove Thy greater things.
– ALBERT ORSBORN
2 Cor. 12:9–10

Reluctant Praying

Turn thou us unto thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned. – Lam. 5:21 Rev.

Bramwell, who used to see hundreds of people converted and sanctified everywhere he went, prayed six hours a day, and yet he said he always went to secret prayer reluctantly. This reluctance to secret prayer may arise from one or more of several causes: 1. From wicked spirits. I imagine the devil does not care much to see the majority of coldhearted people on their knees in public, for he knows they do it simply because it is proper and the fashion. But he hates to see one on his knees in secret, for that man means business and, if he perseveres in faith, is bound to move God and all heaven in the interests he represents. So the devils oppose that man. 2. From the sluggishness of the body and mind, caused by sickness, loss of sleep, too much sleep, or overeating, which unduly taxes the digestive organs, clogs the blood, and dulls all the higher and nobler powers of the soul. 3. From a failure to respond quickly when we feel led by the Spirit to go to secret prayer. If, when we feel we should pray, we hesitate longer than is necessary, and continue reading or talking when we could just as well be praying, the Spirit of prayer will be quenched. We should cultivate gladness at the thought of getting alone with Jesus in secret communion and prayer, as much as lovers expect pleasure and joy in each other’s presence.

Seek Diligently

Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. – Phil. 2:12

Holiness has not legs and does not go walking about visiting idle people, as a lazy Christian seemed to think who told me that he thought the experience would “come” to him “someday. ” A sister aptly remarked: “He might as well expect the hall to come to him. ” The fact is, there are hindrances in the way of holiness with most people. But you that are seeking the experience must put from you forever the thought that any of these hindrances are in God or in your circumstances; for they are not but are altogether in yourselves. This being true, it is the extreme of folly to sit down with indifference and quietly wait, with folded hands, for the blessed experience to come to you. Be sure of this, it will not come any more than a crop of potatoes will come to the lazy fellow who sits in the shade and never lifts his hoe nor does a stroke of labor through all the spring and summer months. The rule in the spiritual world is this: “If any would not work, neither should he eat”; and “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. Therefore, the part of wisdom is to begin at once, by a diligent study of God’s Word, much secret prayer, unflinching self-examination, rigid self-denial, hearty obedience to all present light, and a faithful attendance at the meetings of God’s people, to find out what these hindrances are. Then, by the grace of God, put them away, though it cost as much pain as to cut off a right hand or to pluck out a right eye.

2 Thess. 3:10; Gal. 6:7

The Fight of Faith

The just shall live by faith. – Gal. 3:11

Many people who say they are fighting the devil do not know what fighting the devil means. It is a fight of faith in which the soul takes hold of the promise of God and holds on to it, and believes it, and declares it to be true in spite of all circumstances and feelings to the contrary. It is one in which the soul obeys God whether God seems to be fulfilling the promise or not. When a soul gets to the point where it will do this and will hold fast the profession of its faith without wavering, it will soon get out of the fogs and mists and twilight of doubt and uncertainty into the broad day of perfect assurance. Glory to God! That one shall know that Jesus saves and sanctifies, and shall be filled with a humbling, yet unutterably joyful, sense of His everlasting love and favor.

Faint not, nor fear, His arms are near,
He changeth not, and thou art dear;
Only believe, and thou shalt see
That Christ is all in all to thee.
– JOHN S. B. MONSELL

The Pursuit of Truth

If thou criest after knowledge, and Iiftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. – Prov. 2:3-5

The truth that saves the soul is not picked up as we would pick up the pebbles along the beach, but it is obtained rather as gold and silver, after diligent search and much digging. The man who gets the truth will have to use his wits, will need much prayer, and self-examination, and self- denial. He must listen diligently in his own soul for God’s voice. He must watch lest he fall into sin and forgetfulness, and he must meditate in the truth of God day and night. Getting saved is not like taking a holiday outing. The men and women who are full of the truth – who are walking embodiments of the truth – have not become so without effort. They have digged for truth; they have loved it; they have longed for it more than for their necessary food; they have sacrificed all for it. When they have fallen, they have risen again; and when defeated, they have not yielded to discouragement; but with more care and watchfulness, and greater earnestness, they have renewed their efforts for it. They have counted not their lives dear unto themselves that they might know the truth. Wealth, ease, a name among men, reputation, pleasure, everything the world holds, has been counted as dung and dross in their pursuit of truth. And just at that point where truth took precedence over all creation, they found it – truth that saves the soul, that satisfies the heart, that answers the questions of life, and brings fellowship with God, joy unutterable, and perfect peace.

Strength for Bonds and Afflictions

And now, behold, I go bound in the Spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. – Acts 20:22-23

What a message! But it did not dampen Paul’s ardor. His Lord who had died for his sins was marking out his way and going on before, and he followed on without a whimper of self-pity or complaint, or a moment’s hesitation. He was very eager to go to Rome and preach the gospel there in the very center of the world’s pride and pomp and power; but in Jerusalem he was arrested and held in prison without trial for two years while enemies plotted against him. All his plans and hopes seemed finally and hopelessly blasted. But one night as he lay in prison, “The Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome. ” And soon he was on his way to Rome with all passage money paid by the government, for he went as a prisoner and in chains. But to Rome he was going, and before Caesar he was to bear testimony to his Lord, and plant saints in Caesar’s household. Paul was not only “bound in the bundle of life with the Lord his God”; he was bound in the common bundle of life with all his fellowmen. He was not immune from any woe, any disaster, any sorrow and sore amazement that might befall them. He was not the pet of Providence. His Lord did not shield him from hard blows, but He succored him and strengthened him to bear them, not only with patience, but with joyfulness. It is better to be strengthened to bear the burden than to be spared the burden. It is better to be succored in the fight than to be shielded from the fight.

Acts 23:11

Seeing Ourselves

We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. – Isa. 64:6

The Holy Ghost convicts of sin. Men cease to be self-complacent when He comes. Self- righteousness is seen to be a sheet too short to cover us; our moral and spiritual nakedness is exposed. Our pride is rebuked, and we are ashamed. Our eyes are opened, and we see how self-deceived we have been – how un-Christlike in our tempers, how corrupt in our desires, how selfish in our ambitions, how puffed up in our vainglory, how slow to believe, how quick to excuse ourselves and justify our own way. How far from God we have wandered; how unfit for heaven we have become! And He thus reveals us to ourselves in love that He may save us, as a wise and good physician shows us our disease in order to get our consent to be cured. But His supreme work of conviction is to convince us how hopelessly we miss the mark because we do not from the heart believe on and trust in Christ. This is the sin we do not recognize as sin until He convinces us of it: “Of sin, because they believe not on me. “

O wash me now, without, within,
O purge with fire, if that must be!
No matter how, if only sin
Die out in me; die out in me.

Suffering with Christ

Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. – 2 Cor. 4:17

Paul looked upon his sufferings as a part of the sufferings of Christ, as though Christ’s sufferings did not end upon the Cross, but were completed in the sufferings of His disciples. Paul wrote: I now “rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church. ” Happy are we if we can receive all suffering in that spirit, whether it be suffering of body, mind, or soul. It will then work for our good and through us for the good of others, whether or not we can understand how it is to do so. It will purge us of vanity, deepen us in humility, enlarge us in sympathy, and make us more fruitful in the graces of the spirit.

How bitter that cup no heart can conceive,
Which He drank quite up that sinners might live!
His way was much rougher and darker than mine–
Did Christ thus suffer, and shall I repine?
Since all that I meet shall work for my good,
The bitter is sweet, the medicine food;
Though painful at present, ’twill cease before long,
And then, oh, how pleasant the conqueror’s song!
– JOHN NEWTON

Purity

– Not Maturity Be filled with the Holy Ghost. – Acts 9:17

Holiness, for you and for me, is not maturity, but purity; a clean heart in which the Holy Spirit dwells, filling it with pure, tender, and constant love to God and man. There is a plant in South America called the “pitcher plant” on the stalk of which is a little, cuplike formation which is always full of water. When it is very small, it is full; as it grows larger, it is full; and when it reaches its maturity, it is still full. That illustrates holiness. All that God asks is that the heart should be cleansed from sin and full of love, whether it be the tender heart of the little child, with feeble powers of loving, or of the full grown man, or of the flaming archangel before the throne. This is holiness, and this only. It is nothing less than this, and it can be nothing more.

Jesus, Thine all–victorious love
Shed in my heart abroad;
Then shall my feet no longer rove,
Rooted and fixed in God.
– CHARLES WESLEY

Faith Is the Victory

1 Faith Is the Victory Without faith it is impossible to please him. – Heb.11:6

A hindrance in the way of him who would be holy is imperfect faith. When Paul wrote to his followers in Thessalonica, he praised them for being examples to all that believed in Macedonia and Achaia, and added: “In every place your faith to godward is spread abroad. That was the best believing group in all Europe, and so real and sturdy was their faith that they could endure much persecution. Paul says of them, “We were comforted over you, in all our affliction and distress, by your faith. Strong faith that, but it was not perfect, for Paul adds, “Night and day [we are] praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and perfect that which is lacking in your faith. And because of their imperfect faith, they were not sanctified; so we find the apostle praying, “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly. All who are born of God, and have the witness of His Spirit to their justification, know full well that it was not through any good works of their own, nor by growing into it, that they were saved, but it was “by grace … through faith. ” But very many of these dear people seem to think that we are to grow into sanctification or are to get it by our own works. But the Lord settled that question and made it as plain as words can make it, when He told Paul that He sent him to the Gentiles to “open their eyes, and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. ” 1 Thess. 1:8; 3:7, 10; 5:23; Eph. 2:8; Acts 26:18

God Is Faithful

That he would grant you according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man. – Eph. 3:16

If your soul hungering and thirsting for the righteousness of perfect love? Do you want to be like Jesus? Are you prepared to suffer with Him, and to be “hated of all men” for His name’s sake? Then “lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us [you]; … present your body [bodies] a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service … and run with patience the race that is set before us [you], looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our [your] faith. Come to the Lord with the same simple faith that you did when you were saved; lay your case before Him; ask Him to take away all uncleanness, and to perfect you in love; and then believe that He does it. If you will then resist all Satan’s temptations to doubt, you will soon find all your hindrances gone, and yourself rejoicing “with joy unspeakable, and full of glory. “The very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit, and soul, and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.

” Mark 13:13; Heb. 12:1; Rom. 12:1; Heb. 12:1-2; 1 Pet. 1:8; 1 Thess. 5:23-24

Receiving Before Giving

Though it [the vision] tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come. – Hab. 2:3

There is a spiritual bankruptcy, just as there is a pecuniary one. I may become so eager to help the poor that I indiscriminately give away all my property and so become a pauper myself. Likewise I may be so eager to help souls that I give away all my spiritual capital. I talk and talk without waiting on God to fill me. This is folly. We should wait to be clothed with power from on high. We should take time to hear what the Lord will say; then speak so much as He gives us to speak and no more. Then again seek His face and be quiet and attentive before Him till He refills us. If we do not do this, we become weak inwardly; we draw on our reserve power, and become exhausted both spiritually and mentally. We may be so eager to give that we become impatient of waiting upon God to receive, forgetting that Jesus said: “Without me ye can do nothing. Those who have blessed men the most, and blessed the most men, have taken time to listen to God’s voice and to be taught of Him.

Only as I truly know Thee
Can I make Thee truly known;
Only bring the power to others
Which in my own life is shown.
– RUTH TRACY

Why Worry?

In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength. – Isa. 30:15

Worry is a great foe to holiness, and perfect trust puts an end to worry. I would as soon swear as fret, ” said John Wesley. The murmuring and complaining of His children has ever been a great sin in the sight of God and has led to untold suffering on their part. Most people do not see this to be a sin, but it is. It dishonors God, blinds the eyes to His will, and deafens the ears to His voice. It is the ditch along one side of the pathway of trust. Lazy or heartless indifference is the ditch on the other side. Happy is the Christian who keeps out of either ditch and walks securely on the pathway. Though it may be often narrow and difficult, it is safe. Praise the Lord! Worrying prevents quiet thought and earnest, believing prayer; and it is, therefore, always bad. If circumstances are against us, we need quietness of mind, clearness of thought, decision of will, and strength of purpose with which to face these circumstances and overcome them. But all this is prevented or hindered by fret or worry.

Trusting as the moments fly;
Trusting as the days go by;
Trusting Him whate’er befall;
Trusting Jesus, that is all.
– EDGAR PAGE STITES

Are You Tempted?

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations. – Jas. 1:2

Do not be surprised if you have very unusual tempta tions. You remember that it was after Jesus was baptized with the Holy Ghost that He was led into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil for 40 days and 40 nights. “The disciple is not above his master. ” But when you are tempted, count it all joy. Your very trials and temptations will lead you into a deeper acquaintance with Jesus; for, as He was, so are you to be in this present world. Remember, He has said: “My grace is sufficient for thee”; and it is written of Him: “For in that he himself hath suffered, being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted”; and again: “We have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. ” But, “What shall we say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? ” Be true, be full of faith, and you will be able to say with Paul: “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
” Matt. 10:24; 2 Cor. 12:9; Heb. 2:18; 4:15; Rom. 8:31, 37-39.

Dynamite!

Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. – Acts 1:8

Neither the Bible nor experience affirms that a man gets a clean heart when he is converted, but just the contrary. He does have his sins forgiven; he does receive the witness of adoption into God’s own family; he does have his affections changed. But before he has gone very far, he will find his patience mixed up with some degree of impatience, his kindness mixed with wrath, his meekness mixed with anger (which is of the heart, and may not be seen of the world, but of which he is painfully conscious). His humility he will see mixed with pride, his loyalty to Jesus mixed with a shame of the Cross. In fact, the fruit of the Spirit and the works of the flesh, in greater or less degree, are all mixed up together. After conversion, he finds his old sinful nature much like a tree which has been cut down, but the stump still left. The tree causes no more bother, but the stump will still bring forth little shoots, if it is not watched. The quickest and most effective way is to put some dynamite under the stump and blow it up. Just so, God wants to put the dynamite of the Holy Ghost (the word dynamite comes from the same Greek word as “power” in Acts 1:8) into every converted soul, and forever do away with that old troublesome sinful nature, so that He can truly say, “Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
” 2 Cor. 5:17

Satanic Strategy

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. –Eph. 6:11

The last thing a soul has to give up, when seeking salvation or sanctification, is “an evil heart of unbelief. ” This is Satan’s stronghold. You may drive him from all his outposts, and he does not care much; but when you assail this citadel, he will resist with all the lies and cunning he can command. He does not care much if people do give up outward sin. A respectable sinner will suit his purpose quite as well as the most disreputable. In fact, I am not sure but that some people are worse than the devil wants them to be, for they are a bad advertisement for him. Nor does he care very much if people indulge a hope of salvation or of purity; indeed, I suspect he likes them to do so, if he can get them to stop there. But let a poor soul say to himself, “I want to know I am saved now. I must have the blessing now; I can’t live any longer without the witness of the Spirit that Jesus saves me now, and cleanses me now, ” and the devil will begin to roar and lie. He will use all his wits to deceive the soul and switch it onto some sidetrack, or rock it to sleep with a promise of victory at some future time.

What though a thousand hosts engage
A thousand worlds my soul to shake?
I have a shield shall quell their rage,
And drive the alien armies back;
Portrayed it bears a bleeding Lamb:
I dare believe in Jesus’ name.
– CHARLES WESLEY

Christ Is All

Christ is all, and in all. – Col. 3:11

No doubt, some of you not only gave yourselves to God, but God gave himself to you. You did receive the Holy Ghost. When He came in, self went out. You abhorred, you loathed yourself, and sank into nothingness, while Jesus became All and in all. That is the first thing the Holy Ghost does when He comes into the heart in all His fullness – He glorifies Jesus. We see Jesus as we never saw Him before; we love Him; we adore Him; we ascribe all honor, and glory, and power unto Him. We realize, as we never did before, that through His precious blood we are saved and sanctified. The Holy Spirit will not call your attention to himself, but will point to Jesus. “He shall not speak of himself … He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you, ” said Jesus; and again He says, “He shall testify of me. Nor does He come to reveal to us any new truth, but rather to make us understand the old truth that Jesus spoke, and which the prophets and apostles, whom He inspired, spoke. “He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. ” He will make your Bible a new Book to you. He will make you remember it. He will teach you how to apply it to your everyday life so that you will be safely guided by it. John 16:13-14; 15:26; 14:26.

A Transaction with God

Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. – Jas. 4:8

A plain, humble young Irishman heard about the blessing of a clean heart and went alone and fell on his knees before the Lord and cried to Him for it. A man happened to overhear him and wrote about it, saying, “I shall never forget his petition; ‘O God, I plead with Thee for this blessing! Then, as if God was showing him what was in the way, he said, ‘My Father, I will give up every known sin, only I plead with Thee for power. And then, as if his individual sins were passing before him, he said again and again, ‘I will give them up; I will give them up. ‘ “Then without any emotion, he rose from his knees, turned his face heavenward, and simply said, ‘And now I claim the blessing. For the first time he now became aware of my presence and, with a shining face, reached out his hand to clasp mine. You could feel the presence of the Spirit as he said, ‘I have received Him; I have received Him! “And I believe he had, for in the next few months he led more than 60 men into the kingdom of God. His whole life was transformed. “

Now I feel the sacred fire,
Kindling, flaming, glowing,
Higher still, and rising higher,
All my soul o’erflowing.
Life immortal I receive;
Oh, the wondrous story!
I was dead, but now I live,
Glory, glory, glory!

The Abiding Spirit

Walk in the Spirit. – Gal. 5:16

After having received the Holy Ghost, many people get into confusion. In time of temptation, they think He has left them. Instead of trusting and acknowledging His presence, and thanking Him for stooping so low as to dwell in their poor hearts, they begin to seek Him as though He had not already come, or had gone away. They should stop seeking at once, and go to fighting the devil by faith, and telling him to get behind them, and go to praising the Lord for His presence with them. If you will seek light when you have light, you will find darkness and confusion. If you begin to seek the Holy Spirit when you already have Him, you will grieve Him. What He wants is that you have faith. Therefore, having received Him into your hearts, continually acknowledge His presence. Obey Him, glory in Him, and He will abide with you forever, and His presence will be power in you. Do not keep seeking and crying for more power. Rather seek, by prayer and watchfulness and study of your Bible and the honest improvement of every opportunity, to be a perfectly free channel for the power of the Holy Ghost who is now in you. Believe God and do not obstruct the way of the Holy Ghost, that He may work through you. Ask Him to teach and guide you, that you may not hinder Him in His work. Seek to think His thoughts, to speak His words, to feel His love, and exercise His faith. Seek to be so guided by Him that you will pray when He wants you to pray, sing when He wants you to sing, and last, but not least, be silent when He wants you to be silent.

From Praise to Peace

I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know. – Isa. 45:3

This year has been wonderful. At the beginning of this year, in the midst of a glorious revival campaign in Detroit, I was suddenly stricken with a trouble that sent me to the surgeon’s table for my third major operation in 14 years. It took me close to the gates of death. My brain was bled white and was exhausted; my appetite was gone; my nerves were utterly shattered, until at any moment, I would give way to uncontrollable tears. I lost all spiritual emotion. If I had judged by my feelings, I should have said, “There is no God, and the grave is my endless goal. ” But facts do not change with our change of feelings. So I stood by my facts. John wrote: “We have known and have believed the love that God hath to us. ” I had known, I had believed that love, but now I did not feel it. Utter gloom and depression enshrouded my soul. But right at that point I asserted my faith. I stood by my facts. I stirred up the gift of God within me, with no feeling of thankfulness. Feeling seemed dead within me. But I said, “I will praise Him. He is worthy of praise regardless of my feelings. I will thank Him, thank Him for this gloom, this wearing and awful depression. It, too, will work for my good. Mine enemy shall not triumph over me. ” Prayer did not help me, but praise did. As I thanked Him and offered my feeble praise, the gloom vanished like fog, the depression of soul slipped away. The mocking enemy of my soul fled away into his own darkness, and peace – quiet, sweet peace – filled my heart. Hallelujah! My soul has been enriched by this experience, and God’s unfailingness has been vindicated. He has given me “the treasures of darkness, ” and I have been sharing with my brethren these spoils taken in spiritual battles. Some of them who have been enshrouded with gloom have seen light and been set at liberty. 1 John 4:16.

Confess Your Faith

They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony. – Rev. 12:11

A former soldier of mine gave herself to God, but did not feel any difference, and so hesitated to say that God had sanctified her wholly. But, ” she said, “I began to reason over the matter thus: I know I have given myself wholly to God. I am willing to be anything, do anything, suffer anything for Jesus. I am willing to forego all pleasure, honor, and all my cherished hopes and plans for His sake, but I do not feel that God sanctifies me. Yet He promises to do so on the simple condition that I give myself to Him. I must believe His Word. Knowing that I have given myself to Him, I must believe or make Him a liar. I will believe that He does now sanctify me. “But, ” said she, “I did not get any witness that the work was done just then. However, I rested in God, and some days after this I went to one of the holiness conventions, and there, while a number were testifying, I thought I would rise and tell them God sanctified me. I did so, and between rising up and sitting down, God came and witnessed that it was done. Now I know I am sanctified. ” And her shining face was a sufficient evidence that the work was, indeed, done. “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Give yourself wholly to God, trust Him, then confess your faith. And the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. ” Jas. 4:7; Mal. 3: 1

God Answers Prayer

We will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word. – Acts 6:4

All great soul-winners have been men of much and mighty prayer, and all great revivals have been preceded and carried out by persevering, prevailing knee-work in the closet. Before Jesus began His ministry, when great multitudes followed Him, He spent 40 days and nights in secret prayer and fasting. Paul prayed without ceasing. Day and night his prayers and pleadings and intercessions went up to God. The Pentecostal baptism of the Spirit, and the 3,000 conversions in one day, were preceded by 10 days of prayer and praise and heart-searching and Bible-searching. And they continued in prayer until, on another day, 5,000 were converted. Even “a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith. ” Luther used to pray three hours a day, and he broke the spell of ages and set captive nations free. John Knox used to spend nights in prayer, and cry to God, saying, “Give me Scotland, or I die! ” And God gave him Scotland. David Brainerd used to lie on the frozen ground at night, wrapped in a bear’s skin, and spit blood, and cry to God to save the Indians. God heard him, and they were converted and sanctified by the scores and hundreds.

The Soul-Winner’s Qualifications

No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. – 2 Tim. 2:4

When God searches for a man to work in His vineyard, He does not ask, “Has he great natural abilities? Is he thoroughly educated? Is he a fine singer? Is he eloquent in prayer? Can he talk much? But rather, He asks, “Is his heart perfect toward Me? Is he holy? Does he love much? Is he willing to walk by faith, and not by sight? Does he love Me so much, and has he such childlike confidence in My love for him, that he can trust Me to use him when he doesn’t see any sign that I am using him? “Will he be weary and faint when I correct him and try to fit him for greater usefulness? Or will he, like Job, cry out, ‘Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him’? Does he search My Word and meditate therein day and night, in order to do according to all that is written therein? Does he wait on Me for My counsel, and seek in everything to be led by My Spirit? Or is he stubborn and self-willed, like the horse and mule, which have to be held in with bit and bridle, so that I cannot guide him with Mine eye? Is he a man-pleaser and a time-server, or is he willing to wait for his reward? Does he seek solely for the honor that cometh from God only? Does he preach the Word, and is he ‘instant in season, and out of season? Is he ‘meek and lowly in heart, ‘ and humble?

While I speak to Thee,
Lord, Thy goodness show;
Am I what I ought to be?
O Savior, let me know!
– Herbert H. Booth

The Morning Cometh!

Even to your old age I am he, and even to hoar hairs will I carry you. – Isa. 46:4

Fifty-one years ago God sanctified my soul, revealed Christ in me, and flooded me with love. And now I am at the evening time of my life, and semi-blindness has fallen upon me, so that I can neither read nor write. This gives poignant meaning to the words of Jesus, “The night cometh, when no man can work”; but when the night falls, the eternal stars shine out. But the morning also cometh – the morning without clouds, the morning of a day in which there is no setting sun, where God himself shall be my everlasting Light. And with the morning will come the vision of His dear face who loved me and gave himself for me; who redeemed me and washed me from my sins in His own precious blood and made me a glad child of God. In that blissful day will come the sweet reunion with those we have long since loved and lost, and with the saints and soldiers of Jesus, the apostles, prophets, priests, kings, and martyrs – the great army of witnesses that have so thrilled, inspired, and helped to guide me in right paths through long years. I am old. The weight of the years press upon me, but I am one of the gladdest old men in the whole, round world. I am ever hearing whispers of love, and my evening time is all light. From this mountain peak of 75 years I send words of cheer and hope to my comrades toiling in the lowlands and struggling up the rocky steeps. Come on! Be not fainthearted! Tarry not by the way! It’s better on before! Don’t grow weary in well-doing! Never cast away your confidence! Trust Him! Rejoice in Him! And go forward where He leads in glad obedience and in willing self- denial, and you will find, with me, that “at evening time it shall be light. ” Hallelujah! John 9:4; Zech. 14:7