Strengthened With Might By His Spirit

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

The strength of the Lord's people is none other than the strength of the Holy Spirit in the inward man.

Right at the very center of the being, deeper than thought or reason...

Deeper than emotion or feeling...

Deeper than all that which comprises the more outward man ...

Which, under given circumstances, may prove weak and incapable of standing up to the situation. 

In the variations of our soul life...

The changes of our moods, our ideas, our attitudes, our feelings, our minds...

Deeper down there is that strength which does not let us go.

That is the true nature of spirituality. 

It is not the tremendously forceful conviction of our intellects or the mighty power of our wills. 

When these cannot stand up to conditions of intense spiritual antagonism, opposition or perplexity...

There is that more inward thing, right in the inward man, which is of God...the Holy Spirit: 

Strengthened with might by His Spirit into the inward man.

Test that out and the result is that when the mind is bewildered by the perplexity of a situation...

And the arguments are all in the direction that a mistake has been made...

A wrong course has been taken...

Everything is false...

When all the feelings are churned up, disturbed, anxious, fearful...

Or when there are no feelings at all, they are simply petrified by the position...

When circumstances are all arguing in the opposite direction of that which we, in the purest moments of our fellowship with God determined upon. 

The world around us and very closely around us...

Even within the sphere of our own natural life, our own soul life is an inexplicable mystery. 

Then spirituality is proved by that inward strength which abides...

That standing when you cannot go forward...

That holding when you can do nothing...

That remaining when all the forces are seeking to sweep you off your feet. 

That represents a measure of spirituality. 

That is the true nature of the child of God. 

The opposite is to be carried away by argument, reasoning, appearance, circumstance, and all such things. 

That proves a lack of true spirituality. 

In a sentence, true spirituality is not to live on the outside...

It is to live with God right down deep in the inner part of your own being, where He, the Spirit, is.

~T. Austin Sparks~

The Enemy Frustrated

Neither did Sennacherib molest the city. He had boasted loudly, but he could not carry out his threats. 

The LORD is able to stop the enemies of His people in the very act. 

When the lion has the lamb between his jaws, the great Shepherd of the sheep can rob him of his prey. 

Our extremity only provides an opportunity for a grander display of divine power and wisdom.

In the case before us, the terrible foe did not put in an appearance before the city which he thirsted to destroy. 

No annoying arrow could he shoot over the walls...

And no besieging engines could he put to work to batter down the castles...

And no banks could he cast up to shut in the inhabitants.

Perhaps in our case also the LORD will prevent our adversaries from doing us the least harm. 

Certainly He can alter their intentions or render their designs so abortive that they will gladly forego them.

Let us trust in the LORD and keep His way, and He will take care of us. 

Yea, He will fill us with wondering praise as we see the perfection of His deliverance.

Let us not fear the enemy when he actually comes, and then let us trust in the LORD. 

~Charles Spurgeon~

Why, Then, Are We So Bewitched With Vanities?

Jer 16:20  Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods?

 

One great besetting sin of ancient Israel was idolatry... 

 

And we who are the spiritual Israel are vexed with a tendency to the same folly! 

We no longer bow down to sticks and stones...

But Mammon still intrudes his golden calf...

And the shrines of pride are not forsaken. 

SELF in various forms, struggles to subdue the chosen ones under its dominion...

And the flesh sets up its altars wherever it can find space for them.

Children are often the cause of much sin in believers...

And the Lord is grieved when He sees us doting upon them above measure. 

They may live to be as great a curse to us as Absalom was to David...

Or they will be taken from us to leave our homes desolate. 

If Christians desire to grow thorns to stuff their sleepless pillows-...let them dote on their children!

It is truly said that "they are not gods," for the objects of our foolish devotion are very doubtful blessings...

The solace which they yield us now is dangerous...

And the help which they can give us in the hour of trouble is little indeed.

Why, Then, Are We So Bewitched With Vanities?  

We pity the poor heathen who adore a god of stone...and yet worship a god of gold!

The principle, the sin, the folly is the same in either case...

Only that in our case the crime is more aggravated because we have more light...

And then still sin in the face of it.

The heathen bows to a false deity...but he has never known the true God.

We commit two evils, inasmuch as we forsake the living God and turn unto idols.

May the Lord purge us all from this grievous iniquity.

1John 5:21  Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

The dearest idol I have known...

Whatever that idol be...

Help me to tear it from Thy throne...

And worship Only Thee! 

~Charles Spurgeon~

There Is One Stable Rock Amidst The Billows Of The Sea Of Life!

Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

It is well that there is One who is ever the same, and who is ever with us.

It is well that there is one stable rock amidst the billows of the sea of life. 

O my soul, do not set your affections upon rusting, moth-eaten, decaying treasures...

But set your heart upon Him who abides forever faithful to you. 

Do not build your house upon the moving quicksands of a deceitful world...

But found your hopes upon this rock, which, amid descending rain and roaring floods, shall stand immovably secure!

My soul, I charge you...lay up your treasure in the only secure cabinet...

Store your jewels where you can never lose them.

Put your all in Christ; set all your affections on His person...
 
All your hope in His merit...
 
All your trust in His efficacious blood...
 
All your joy in His presence...

And so you may laugh at loss and defy difficulties.

Remember that all the flowers in the world's garden wither and die...

And the day is coming when nothing will be left but the black, cold earth. 

Death's black extinguisher must soon put out your candle. 

Oh! how sweet to have sunlight when the candle is gone! 

The dark flood must soon roll between you and all you have!

So wed your heart to Him who will never leave you. 

Trust yourself with Him who will go with you through the black and surging current of death's stream, and who will land you safely on the celestial shore, and make you sit with Him in heavenly places forever!

Go, sorrowing son of affliction-tell your secret troubles to the Friend who sticks closer than a brother. 

Trust all your concerns with Him who never can be taken from you, who will never leave you, and who will never let you leave Him, even "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever."

"I am with you always," is enough for my soul to live upon...though all others forsake me!

~Charles Spurgeon~