Charles H. Spurgeon - What is Satan's Work?

                     

                       What is God's work?  what is Satan's work?

It is always the Holy Spirit's work to turn our eyes away from self to Jesus.

But Satan's work is just the opposite; he is constantly trying to make us look at ourselves instead of Christ.

He insinuates, "Your sins are too great for pardon; you have no faith; you do not repent enough; you will never be able to continue to the end; you do not have the joy of His children; you have such a wavering hold on Jesus."


All these are thoughts about self, and we will never find comfort or assurance by looking within.

But the Holy Spirit turns our eyes entirely away from self: He tells us that we are nothing, but that Christ is everything.

Remember, therefore, it is not your hold of Christ that saves you--it is Christ. It is not your joy in Christ that saves you--it is Christ; it is not even your faith in Christ, although that is the instrument--it is Christ's blood and merits.

Therefore, do not look so much to your hand with which you are grasping Christ; do not look to your hope, but to Jesus, the source of your hope; do not look to your faith, but to Jesus the founder and perfecter of your faith.


We will never find happiness by looking at our prayers, our deeds, or our feelings; it is what Jesus is, not what we are, that gives rest to the soul. If we are to overcome Satan and have peace with God, it must be by "looking to Jesus."

Keep your eye simply on Him; let His death, His sufferings, His merits, His glories, His intercession be fresh upon your mind. When you waken in the morning look to Him; when you lie down at night look to Him.

Do not let your hopes or fears come between you and Jesus; follow hard after Him, and He will never fail you.

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and

righteousness

I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus'

name.

A day in the life of Jesus - John 9

A day in the life of Jesus, from The Gospel of John, chapter 9.

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth....he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes.

"Go," he told him, "Wash in the Pool of Siloam."

So the man went and washed, and came home seeing....

When his neighbors saw him they asked,

"How then were your eyes opened?"

He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed and then I could see."

The religious leaders questioned him. They told him:

"Give glory to God. We know this man is a sinner."

He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"



The angry religious leaders threw him out of the synagogue.

Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

"Who is he?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."

Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you."

Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshipped him.



This treasured story in the life of Christ is one of the only 7 miracles recorded by John, the beloved disciple.

Some thoughts:

1. After the man was healed, the text says he went "home seeing." He did not come back to talk to Jesus. So he had not seen Jesus. He simply referred to Christ as "the man they call Jesus."

2. We see a growth in the man's eyes of faith. Who Christ really was became clearer and clearer.

At first, he spoke of Jesus as "the man they call Jesus."

Then, in verse 17: "He is a prophet."

Finally, in verses 35-38, he asks, "Who is the Son of Man that I may believe in him?..."Lord I believe," and he worshipped him.

A man... a prophet...a God to worship...

From a man who had not seen to the God he worshipped - a progression of giant steps of faith mirrored in our own lives.

3. Why did Jesus come back to find him?

In verse 12 we are told the man did not know where Jesus was.

But Jesus knew right where he was!

Jesus had seen the blind man, had healed him and so that story would appear to be over!

But there was more. Jesus was not finished with the man. There was more to do! More healing! So he sought him out to complete the job - the real goal was not restoring the blind man's eyesight, but restoring the man's position with God - through faith in His Son!

Many years ago we had a trendy sentence we often used -- even had it put on tee-shirts!

PBPWMGINFWMY - Please be patient with me, God is not finished with me yet!

That's our story, too! God is not finished with us.

He is still working on us!

Being confident of this, that he began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

The Day of Jesus Christ! That's the Day we look for!

We know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see him as he is. 1 John 3:2


We shall see Him - really see Him - our eyesight will be perfect!

In the Presence of God - C S Lewis

Whenever we find that our religious life is making us feel that we are good--above all, that we are better than someone else--I think we may be sure that we are being acted on, not by God, but by the devil.

The real test of being in the presence of God is that you either forget about yourself altogether, or see yourself as a small, dirty object.

It is better to forget about yourself altogether.



C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Is Forgetfulness a Sin?

 "The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle. They did not keep God's covenant and refused to live by His law. They forgot what He had done, the wonders He had shown them" (Psalm 78:9-11).

The men of Ephraim (the northern tribes) adopted idolatry and rejected their true God. They were conquered by the Assyrians, deported, and sent into exile and servitude. Their problem? Spiritual forgetfulness!

We Christians can also suffer the consequences of forgetting God's faithfulness. Peter warns us about this...'Forgetting that we have been cleansed from our past sins' (2 Peter 1:9).

How could we forget? The massive sin problem that Christ took care of on the cross? 

But God can no more forget us than a nursing mother could forget her baby, Isaiah tells us. And even if she did, He never will! (Isaiah 49:15).

Remembering who He is and what He has done is the key to trusting God!

Lord,

I worry because I forget Your wisdom.

I resent because I forget Your mercy.

I envy because I forget Your beauty.

I sin because I forget Your holiness.

I fear because I forget Your sovereignty.

You always remember me. Help me to always remember You.

Amen

Daniel - How did God Show His love for Him?

What God said to Daniel --

    I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, 'My Lord, what will the outcome of all this be?'

    He replied, 'Go your way, Daniel, because the words are rolled up and sealed until the time of the end. Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand....

    As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest and then at the end of the days you will rise up to receive your allotted inheritance.' 

Daniel 12:9-13

How many times have I read this passage? Dozens?  - maybe a hundred times in my life. But this week I keep re-reading these gracious words. 

How God must have loved Daniel! And how confident Daniel was of His love for him! After revealing so much of the future of mankind and God's Kingdom to Daniel - Daniel knew more than anyone else about what was going to transpire - 'Daniel, go on with your life...you will rest and at the end of your days you will receive your reward.....well done!'

 

Now look at this!

It is really fascinating to compare these words to Daniel at the end of his revelation of things to come with those words spoken by the angel to John the author of the Book of Revelation at the end of the visions given to him. Look at  the Book of Revelation written by John hundreds of years later.Turn to the last chapter (22) and see verses 8-11 -- see how the angel repeated similar words to him at the end of his revelation to John? 

  "I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things....Then he [the angel] told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong, let him who is vile continue to be vile, let him who does right continue to do right, and let him who is holy continue to be holy."

To Daniel: These words are rolled up and sealed until the end of time

To John hundreds of years later: Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book because the time is near....

Yes, I am coming soon!

Amen, come Lord Jesus!