Christ's garden

(by Spurgeon)  "I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse." Song of Solomon 5:1 The heart of the believer is Christ's garden. He bought it with His precious blood, and He enters it and claims it as His own. A garden implies separation. It is not the open common; it is not a wilderness; it is walled around, or hedged in. Would that we could see the wall of separation between the church and the world made broader and stronger. It makes one sad to hear Christians saying, "Well, there is no harm in this; there is no harm in that," thus getting as near to the world as possible. Grace is at a low ebb in that soul which can even raise the question of how far it may go in worldly conformity. A garden is a place of beauty, it far surpasses the wild uncultivated lands. The genuine Christian must seek to be more excellent in his life than the best moralist, because Christ’s garden ought to produce the best flowers in all the world. Even the best is poor compared with Christ’s deservings; let us not put Him off with withering and dwarf plants. The rarest, richest, choicest lilies and roses ought to bloom in the place which Jesus calls His own. The garden is a place of growth. The saints are not to remain undeveloped, always mere buds and blossoms. We should grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Growth should be rapid where Jesus is the Husbandman, and the Holy Spirit the dew from above. A garden is a place of retirement. So the Lord Jesus Christ would have us reserve our souls as a place in which He can manifest Himself, as He does not unto the world. O that Christians were more retired, that they kept their hearts more closely shut up for Christ! We often worry and trouble ourselves, like Martha, with much serving, so that we have not the room for Christ that Mary had, and do not sit at His feet as we should. The Lord grant the sweet showers of His grace to water His garden this day. link

At the Crossroads

by T. Austin-Sparks


"Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls" (Jeremiah 6:16).

At some point - not quite easy to fix - a false current had entered the stream of the life of the Lord's people. Small at first, it had gathered momentum, until it had taken control and was carrying everything before it.

The effect was the almost total loss of a central and controlling, integrating authority; a loss of one uniting vision and objective. Out of this there arose confusion; no one knowing what was right or wrong. This confusion and uncertainty became wearing and wearisome, and futility took the heart out of them. The inevitable result of all this was division.

Some wearily accepted the situation and sought to neutralize it by compromise. Some, numbed and bewildered, stood with hand on hips (metaphorically) hoping that something would come round the corner and things would improve. Others were fearful and anxious as to where it would all lead to.

To this situation God spoke in the words quoted above. It was a pointer as to the way, and a challenge to courage, faithfulness, and humility.

"Stand in the ways and see", said the Lord.

The ways were the crossroads; the place of alternatives. Go back to where you made the wrong choice, took the wrong turning, and got off the way of blessing. In the light of the unhappy present, reconsider your decisions. Ask yourselves whether 'the old paths', with all their difficulties and conflicts, were not better than this present.

"Stand". Pause, reflect, consider, relax, break the spell.

The case with Israel seems definitely to come down on the side of "the old paths". There was then an authoritative voice; a throne overhead, a vision and purpose uniting, co-ordinating; a distinctive objective, and an impact upon peoples near and far. Those days of David and Solomon were such 'old paths'. They were days when Heaven was in evidence.

Then came that false current in the nature of tiring of the heavenly, they stooped to the earthly, the tangible, the present, the popular and less ostracized. So the realm and level began to change, until the situation in Jeremiah's time was the general. But people were weary of soul.
If it is thought that the diagnosis which we have given is strained or a mistake, look at the inclusive answer in chapter 17, verse twelve:

"A glorious throne, set on high from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary".


The rule of the heavenly is the sanctuary; the refuge and rest. It was the way of the opened Heaven, which is the way of God's satisfaction. Says the Lord: "And ye shall find rest for your souls". We seem to have heard words like those before.

The reconsideration at the crossroads must lead to action. Having stood, asked, and seen - "walk therein". Repent, return, decide, do! "Walk therein".

The open mind and heart. The submissive and humble will. The honest and courageous resolve and committal.

"Stand". "Ask". "Walk". "Find rest".

First published in "A Witness and A Testimony" magazine, Sep-Oct 1964, Vol 42-5


link

I am God--and not man!

(James Smith, "Rills from the Rock of Ages", 1860)

"I will not carry out My fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Israel. For I am God--and not man; the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath!" Hosea 11:9

Thus spoke the Lord, when assigning a reason for not executing the fierceness of His wrath upon guilty and rebellious Israel. A God can do--what a man cannot; and a God can bear--what a man cannot. God always acts in accordance with the grandeur, glory, and greatness of His nature.
Every thought of His heart,
every word of His mouth, and
every work of His hand--
is worthy of Himself!

If we bear this in mind, it will . . .
  fortify our minds,
  strengthen our faith,
  and comfort our souls.

Why does God not cut down the wicked immediately? Because He is God--and not man.

Why does He chasten His people so greatly, and allow them to suffer so much? Because He is God--and not man.

Let us meditate on this declaration of our God for a few moments.

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I am infinitely patient, and not soon moved to take vengeance upon My sinful and rebellious creatures!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I am ready to forgive, and receive back the returning prodigal to My heart and home!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I receive great sinners, taking to My heart, and putting among My children--such despicable ones as no one else would notice or regard!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I pardon again and again, not only first offences--but repeated transgressions, forgiving and forgetting them forever!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore bear with such numerous affronts, such gross ingratitude, such inexcusable conduct--in My own people!

"I am God, and not man," and therefore I invite, entreat, and beseech such base backsliders to return unto Me, and prove the power and freeness of My forgiving love!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I save freely, fully, and forever--such degraded, depraved, and desperate sinners, to the praise of the glory of My grace!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I remain faithful to My promises and covenant engagements, amidst all the changes and faithlessness of My fickle people!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I give such rich, costly, priceless gifts--to the poor, destitute, and unworthy sinners!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I hear, accept, and answer, such poor, imperfect, and worthless prayers--which, no one else could tolerate, much less approve!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore I work such wonders--wonders in providence, and wonders in grace; wonders in the world, and wonders in the heart!

"I am God--and not man," and therefore, I have prepared such mansions, and will confer such a glorious kingdom--on sinners who have no claim upon Me, nor the least reason to expect any good thing from Me!

Yes, because He is Jehovah, and changes not--therefore we poor, sinning, changeable creatures are not consumed!

Believer, to you the Lord says, "I am God--and not man!" Therefore expect from Him as God--and act toward Him as God! He can do exceedingly and abundantly, above all that you can ask or think! Do not measure His heart by yours--but remember that as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are His thoughts higher than your thoughts, and Hisways than your ways!

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

We have posted James Smith's encouraging 2 page article, Sleeping with the Fathers

link

The cross of Christ

From Octavius Winslow's "The Believer Crucified" 


Jesus could accomplish man's redemption
in no other way than by crucifixion. He must
die, and die the death of the cross.

"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ, through which the world has been
crucified to me, and I to the world." Galatians 6:14

What light and glory beam around the cross! 

Of what prodigies of grace is it the instrument,
of what glorious truths is it the symbol, of what
mighty, magic power is it the source!

Around it gathers all the light of the Old Testament
economy. It explains every symbol, it substantiates
every shadow, it solves every mystery, it fulfills every
type, it confirms every prophecy of that dispensation
which had eternally remained unmeaning and inexplicable
but for the death of the Son of God upon the cross.

Not the past only, but all future splendor, gathers
around the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. It assures
us of the ultimate reign of the Savior, tells of the
reward which shall spring from His sufferings; and
while its one arm points to the divine counsels of
eternity past, with the other it points to the future
triumph and glory of Christ's kingdom in the eternity
to come. Such is the lowly yet sublime, the weak yet
mighty instrument by which the sinner is saved and
God eternally glorified.

The cross of Christ was in Paul's view
the grand consummation of all preceding
dispensations of God to men.

The cross of Christ was the meritorious
procuring cause of all spiritual blessings
to our fallen race.

The cross of Christ was the scene of Christ's
splendid victories over all His enemies and ours.

The cross of Christ was the most powerful
incentive to all evangelical holiness.

The cross of Christ was the instrument which was
to subjugate the world to the supremacy of Jesus.

The cross of Christ was the source
of all true peace, joy, and hope.

The cross of Christ is the tree beneath
whose shadow all sin expired, all grace lived.

The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ! What a
holy thrill these words produce in the heart
of those who love the Savior! How significant
their meaning, how precious their influence!

Marvelous and irresistible is the power of the cross!

The cross of Christ has subdued many a rebellious will.

The cross of Christ has broken many a marble heart.

The cross of Christ has laid low many a vaunting foe.

The cross of Christ has overcome and triumphed
when all other instruments have failed.

The cross of Christ has transformed the lion like
heart of man, into the lamb like heart of Christ.

And when lifted up in its own naked simplicity and
inimitable grandeur, the cross of Christ has won and
attracted millions to its faith, admiration, and love!

What a marvelous power does this cross of Jesus 
possess! It changes the Christian's entire judgment
of the world. Looking at the world through the cross,
his opinion is totally revolutionized. He sees it as it
really is; a sinful, empty, vain thing.

He learns its iniquity, in that it crucified the Lord of life and glory.

His expectations from the world, his love to the
world, are changed. He has found another object
of love, the Savior whom the world cast out and
slew. And his love to the world is destroyed by
that power which alone could destroy it, the
crucifying power of the cross.

It is the cross which eclipses, in the view of the true
believer, the glory and attraction of every other object.

What is the weapon by which faith combats with and
overcomes the world? What but the cross of Jesus?

Just as the natural eye, gazing for a while upon the sun,
is blinded for the moment, by its overpowering effulgence,
to all other objects; so to the believer, wont to concentrate
his mind upon the glory of the crucified Savior, studying
closely the wonders of grace and love and truth meeting
in the cross, the world with all its attraction fades into
the full darkness of an eclipse.

Are not Christ and His cross infinitely
better than the world and its love?

"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ, through which the world has been
crucified to me, and I to the world." Galatians 6:14

link

PR firms make London world capital of reputation laundering

British firms earning millions advising foreign regimes whose controversial activities may have stained their countries' images

• Read more on how British PR agencies are approached by different governments around the world

EXCERPT

It has a strong claim to be the world capital of everything from finance to design, but now London can add a new, more dubious distinction: it has become the reputation laundering destination of choice for foreign heads of state whose controversial activities may have stained their countries' public images.

An investigation by the Guardian has revealed that the capital's public relations firms are earning millions of pounds a year promoting foreign regimes with some of the world's worst human rights records, including Saudi Arabia, Rwanda, Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka.

READ MORE.....

*****************



Reputation Laundering Made in Britain

WHY REPUTATION MANAGEMENT IS NOT REPUTATION LAUNDERING!


*******************
Camelot Castle's owner claims bad TripAdvisor reviews are part of anti-Scientology campaign

Mr Mappin, who counts fellow Scientologists Tom Cruise and John Travolta as his friends, now wants the negative reviews removed from the website.

However, TripAdvisor has hit back at the claims saying that, of the 530 reviews of the Cornish hotel on its website, 195 rate it as ‘excellent’ compared to 146 who rate it as ‘terrible’.

TripAdvisor also claims that some hotel owners are hiring ‘reputation laundering’ firms to write positive reviews and improve their online profiles.

YE ARE NOT YOUR OWN by Oswald Chambers

"Know ye not that . . ye are not your own?" 1 Corinthians 6:19

There is no such thing as a private life - "a world within the world" - for a man or woman who is brought into fellowship with Jesus Christ's sufferings. God breaks up the private life of His saints, and makes it a thoroughfare for the world on the one hand and for Himself on the other. No human being can stand that unless he is identified with Jesus Christ. We are not sanctified for ourselves, we are called into the fellowship of the Gospel, and things happen which have nothing to do with us, God is getting us into fellowship with Himself. Let Him have His way, if you do not, instead of being of the slightest use to God in His Redemptive work in the world, you will be a hindrance and a clog.

The first thing God does with us is to get us based on rugged Reality until we do not care what becomes of us individually as long as He gets His way for the purpose of His Redemption. Why shouldn't we go through heartbreaks? Through those doorways God is opening up ways of fellowship with His Son. Most of us fall and collapse at the first grip of pain; we sit down on the threshold of God's purpose and die away of self-pity, and all so called Christian sympathy will aid us to our death bed. But God will not. He comes with the grip of the pierced hand of His Son, and says - "Enter into fellowship with Me; arise and shine." If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart.

link

Home, sweet home! There is no place like home!

(James Smith, "Rills from the Rock of Ages", 1860)

"These all died in faith . . . they confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth" Hebrews 11:13

The day of life with them is ended. Its duties are ended. Its responsibilities are past. Itshours are fled away.

What a trying day some of them had! How stormy. How sultry. How often overcast. How gloomy. But it is now past--and past forever! The toils of the wilderness are over! They had much to afflict and pain them . . .
  a difficult and dangerous journey,
  a long wearisome march,
  many a heavy cross to carry,
  many a stubborn foe to face,
  many a painful doubt,
  numerous gloomy fears.

But now the wilderness is all behind them! The afflictions of the pilgrimage are terminated. Those sufferings were sharp, and some of them continued long. Many of them were endured in secret without sympathy, and without relief. They were soulsorrows, agony of mind--as well as sharp pains of body. But however multiplied, however severe, however protracted those sorrows--they are past and gone, never, never to return!