The Two Sowers

By Horatious Bonar


"But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way."-Matthew 13:25.


There are two sowers in this parable, yet but one field; two kinds of seed, yet but one field. The one field is this world, called in verse 41, "his kingdom;" the sowers are the Son of man and the devil; the two seeds are the wheat and the tares. The field belongs to the Son of man; the enemy had no part in its proprietorship; he does his mischief by stealth and cunning; he climbs over the wall in the night while men sleep. He is the enemy of the Son of man; and his desire is twofold, (1) to choke the good seed, and (2) to fill the field with tares. He is the same enemy that stole into Paradise, and wrought ruin there. The parable exhibits him as full of (1) enmity, (2) cunning, (3) determination, (4) patience, (5) confidence. All these we find brought out in this simple and apparently very useless expression, "he went his way," or "left the place"-άπήλθεν. Why did he thus go his way?

I. He did not wish to be seen. He came by night, and he went by night. He came while men slept, and he went ere they awoke. He did not wish it to be known that he was there. He did not care for the fame of doing the thing; all he cared for was, that it should be done. How different from us! We care more about the honour of doing a thing than the work itself. How single-eyed is Satan in his evil! He does his work unknown. He steals quietly to his work and from his work, without sound of trumpet. Besides, he does not want to excite men's fears, or to alarm the servants of the Master by his visible presence. That would defeat his object. Ah, it is with an invisible devil that we have to do; mighty, but unseen; the ruler of the darkness of this world,-himself loving the darkness,-dwelling and working in it. Surely we need to watch, whether in keeping our own vineyard or that of others.


II. He had done his work. It might be on a greater or a larger scale, that mattered not. He had done his work. It did not require repetition or re-sowing. The sower had done all that, as a sower, he could do. Sowing is not a process repeated daily; it is done once; he did not come night after night to sow and re-sow. He needed but one sowing-time; and so he went his way.

Genuine Faith - Endurance Tested

There is no short cut to having a strong faith. Saying you have strong faith is one thing, and possessing strong faith is another! Genuine faith will be tested through tribulation and fiery trials to prove it's worth. The Bible is full of examples of people that endured through the testing of their faith, and after overcoming through thick and thin they received what was promised from God, and proved to be men and women of God.

GUARDING THE TREASURE

GUARDING THE TREASURE

[Harry Foster]


THE Finnish merchant was at Helsinki Airport waiting to take a plane to Milan in Italy when he was met by an official who asked him if he would do a favour for the sake of his country. The favour would be to take a parcel of valuable glassware and keep it carefully on his lap during the whole flight. Although not wanting to have the bother, he was a man who was always ready to serve his country, so he said 'Yes'; but he was very inquisitive to know the meaning of this unusual request.

He looked around and found that other passengers were being asked the same question, and it seemed that they also were agreeing, as they, too, were being issued with parcels of various shapes and sizes.

The explanation was that a Trade Exhibition was being held in Milan and that Finland had planned to display the superb glass articles made by one of its great artists. Everything had been arranged in good time, and the artist had provided some of his very best workmanship. It had been crated and sent off to Italy, but, alas! when the packing cases were opened it was found that the precious objects had been smashed to pieces.

At first those responsible were in despair, but they appealed to the artist in Finland to know if there could possibly be any replacements. The specimens of his work which had been broken were the only ones available, so at first the artist was also near to despair, and then he suddenly had an idea. He had made similar works of art as presents for his friends, and if they could only be collected from the various homes, they could take the place of the broken exhibits, that is, if the friends were willing to lend their precious treasures.

The telephone wires hummed as he called to one and another and explained the urgent situation asking them to be so kind as to lend their glassware for the Milan International Fair. Each one of them gladly responded, not only out of regard for their artist friend, but also for the honour of their beloved Finland. [129/130]

So the articles were assembled and each carefully wrapped, but then came the problem of how to get them safely and quickly to Milan. It was a double problem: first, how to avoid breaking anything this time, and then also how to get them there in time for the opening day.

The artist and his friends appealed to the Government, and someone there had this idea: Why not ask patriotic Finnish air travellers to carry them by hand? So this was why the merchant and his fellow passengers found themselves sitting in the plane, each with a precious parcel on his lap.

The idea proved a great success. All the beautiful glass objects arrived safely, and just in time for them to be taken to the exhibition, arranged and displayed, so that they were ready for the opening.

At first it seemed a trouble to the Helsinki merchant, and he was far from pleased to be asked to carry his parcel, but soon he realized that it was, in fact, a privilege. He found, too, that it gave him many new friends. He was no longer a separate and lonely passenger, but one of a party all sharing in the excitement of their task. They were drawn together by the special parcels which they carried, and in the end they all rejoiced together over its success.

Christians should also be drawn together by the privilege given to them of carrying something precious on life's journey. What we carry is the honour of the Name of our Lord, committed to us to be watched over and kept for Him until we finally hand it over to Him on the great Day of His appearing. Timothy was told: "Guard the treasure put into our charge, with the help of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us" (2 Timothy 1:14, N.E.B.).

I am sure that those passengers were extra careful of every movement when they embarked and travelled, and then as they landed. This was no ordinary journey for them. And for us, like Timothy, if we are true lovers of the Lord there is nothing in life which is ordinary. Wherever we go we are privileged to bear about the great treasure of the honour of His Name. - H. F.
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"Oil for the light."

C.H. SPURGEON

"Oil for the light." Exodus 25:6

My soul, how much thou needest this, for thy lamp will not long continue to burn without it. Thy snuff will smoke and become an offence if light be gone, and gone it will be if oil be absent. Thou hast no oil well springing up in thy human nature, and therefore thou must go to them that sell and buy for thyself, or like the foolish virgins, thou wilt have to cry, "My lamp is gone out." Even the consecrated lamps could not give light without oil; though they shone in the tabernacle they needed to be fed, though no rough winds blew upon them they required to be trimmed, and thy need is equally as great. Under the most happy circumstances thou canst not give light for another hour unless fresh oil of grace be given thee.

It was not every oil that might be used in the Lord's service; neither the petroleum which exudes so plentifully from the earth, nor the produce of fishes, nor that extracted from nuts would be accepted; one oil only was selected, and that the best olive oil. Pretended grace from natural goodness, fancied grace from priestly hands, or imaginary grace from outward ceremonies will never serve the true saint of God; he knows that the Lord would not be pleased with rivers of such oil. He goes to the olive-press of Gethsemane, and draws his supplies from him who was crushed therein. The oil of gospel grace is pure and free from lees and dregs, and hence the light which is fed thereon is clear and bright. Our churches are the Saviour's golden candelabra, and if they are to be lights in this dark world, they must have much holy oil. Let us pray for ourselves, our ministers, and our churches, that they may never lack oil for the light. Truth, holiness, joy, knowledge, love, these are all beams of the sacred light, but we cannot give them forth unless in private we receive oil from God the Holy Ghost.

How God speaks.

Gods Terrible Voice in the City!

Thomas Vincent, 1667

BOOK

Section 1. How God speaks.

"By terrible things in righteousness, you will answer us." Psalm 65:5

This whole Psalm breathes forth nothing but grace and goodness unto the people of God, from the beginning of it, to the end; yes, in the verse of my text where God speaks most terribly and righteously it, the judgments and destructions which he brings upon their enemies — yet he is called the God of their salvation; and those terrible things by which God speaks, are not only a righteous answer unto their enemies' sins, but also a gracious answer unto his people's prayers: "By terrible things in righteousness, you will answer us."

I shall not speak of terrible things in the restrained sense, as they befall only the enemies of God's people, and the wicked, while the righteous do escape, and it may be hereby are preserved; but as they may befall any people, not excluding God's people, whom the Lord may answer by terrible things in righteousness.

Two doctrines we may observe:

Doctrine. 1. That God sometimes speaks unto a people by terrible things.

Doctrine. 2. That when God speaks most terribly — He answers most righteously.
 

First. That God sometimes speaks unto a people by terrible things. Here I shall show,

1. How God may be said to speak.

2. What those terrible things are, by which God sometimes speaks.

3. Why God sometimes speaks unto a people by terrible things;

4. The application.

1. How God may be said to speak.

God, being a Spirit, has no mouth nor tongue properly as men have, who have bodies; and therefore his way of speaking is not like ours (though sometimes he has created a voice in as articulate a sound, as if it had proceeded from the mouth of man, to declare his will,) but there are several ways in which God has spoken, and speaks unto men, by which he does as really and effectually make known his mind, as if he spoke with man's voice.

1. God has spoken formerly unto men immediately, in extraordinary ways, and that sometimes more terribly; as when he gave the law upon Mount Sinai, when the Mount burned with fire, and there was blackness, and darkness, and tempest, thunderings and lightnings, and the sound of the trumpet exceeding loud, and the voice of words so exceeding terrible, that it made the whole camp to tremble; and Moses himself said, "I exceedingly fear and quake," Exodus 19:16; Hebrews 12:18-21.

This way of God's speaking, the children of Israel were not able to bear; therefore they desired that Moses might speak unto them; but that God would not speak unto them thus any more, lest they should die, Exodus 20:19.

At other times God spoke with a more still and gentle voice, and in a more mild way; as when he spoke to Samuel in the night, he thought at first that it had been the voice of Eli, 1 Samuel 3:4, 5. Thus God spoke unto Abraham, unto Jacob, unto Moses, to whom it is said, "He spoke face to face, as a man speaks to his friend," Exodus 33:11.

The Potter!

by James Smith, 1860

The doctrine of God's divine sovereignty is generally offensive to the carnal mind — because it strikes a death-blow at the root of man's pride, and lays the sinner low in the dust before God. Man does not like to be represented as lying absolutely helpless at the foot of divine mercy, entirely at the Lord's disposal. But God must be a sovereign, and if ever we are saved, it must be in the exercise of his sovereignty.

God commands Jeremiah to go down to the potter's house, to be taught a lesson there:

"So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the Lord came to me: 'O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?' declares the Lord. 'Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.'" Jeremiah 18:1-6

These words are as applicable to us, as to them. Observe, 

Our Position. We are in God's hand! He has full possession of us, and absolute power and authority over us. We cannot fly out of his hand, or escape from under his eye! We are in God's hand — as clay in the hand of the potter. We are powerless in his hand. We are wholly at his disposal — to be molded and changed, as to form, appearance, and value — just as he desires. He does with his creatures, according to his will — both in Heaven, and on earth. His will is our law; his decree is our destiny. This may be seen in nature, in providence, and in grace.

He arranged our birth, our position in society, and our calling by his grace.

Whatever he wills — he works.

Whatever he has purposed — he brings to pass.

The potter does not more really preside over the clay — than the Lord presides over all the affairs of the world.

We are in God's hand, as marred vessels. We have no beauty, no apparent value — unfit for sale, and unfit for use. If we are to be of use, if we are to glorify his great name — we must be re-made. Therefore every Christian is said to be, "his workmanship, created anew in Christ Jesus unto good works," and that according to his foreordination. Whatever we are spiritually — we are by his grace. Notice then,

God's Sovereignty. He is our owner. The potter cannot claim the clay, which he has dug out of his own land — as absolutely as the Lord can claim us!

We are his — for he CREATED us. We were not — until he gave us a being; we never would have been — had he not willed it. 

We are his — for he has PRESERVED us. By the constant exercise of his sustaining energy — we have been kept in existence according to his sovereign will.

As believers, we are his by REDEMPTION. Every legal impediment has been removed out of the way of his claiming us, and justly re-molding us, and raising us to the highest happiness and glory.

We are God's material for making vessels of mercy, which are to adorn his heavenly temple, and show forth his praise.

He is our absolute owner. No one can justly question his right, or interfere with his disposal of us. He may do as he will, with his own.

But as infinitely wise, whatever he does will reflect his wisdom.

As impartially just, whatever he does will be in accordance with justice — no part of the creation shall sustain any wrong, by anything he sees fit to do. 

As plenteous in mercy, his mercy will appear in every exercise of his sovereignty. 

We are his, absolutely his — but in dealing with us, in disposing of us — he will act wisely, justly, and in accordance with his mercy. Hence,

The Inquiry? "Can I not do with you as this potter does — says the Lord." Can I not break up the old marred form, reduce it to a shapeless mass, and re-form you for my own use and glory? Yes, he can — and he does! Therefore . . .

we are regenerated,
we are renewed in the spirit of our minds,
we are begotten again to a lively hope.

But God puts the question to us . . .
to convince us that we are absolutely at his disposal;
to impress us with a sense of our dependence on him;
to instruct and teach us that we are at his sovereign mercy;
to silence all the carnal reasonings and objections of the flesh;
and to humble our proud hearts!

O what a mercy it is, that the vilest can be changed! To change the nature and character of the sinner — is God's work alone! We are in one sense, that is in reference to all that is spiritually good — like passive clay in God's hand; he must work in us to will, and to do. He must form us for himself — if we ever actively show forth his praise.

Our God is our divine potter — and who shall effectually resist the working of his mighty power? Who can justly complain, if all that God does as a Sovereign in our world, is done in the exercise of his mercy, and is for our welfare?

Who can find fault without folly — in seeing God, the only wise, the all-comprehending, just, and holy God — taking marred vessels, and making them into vessels of honor — glorifying himself in doing so!

O my soul, lay low before the Lord, and let his own question deeply impress you, "But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to him who formed it: Why did you make me like this?"

O Lord, teach and sanctify me by your Spirit, that I may not only admit the doctrine of your sovereignty; but admire its working, and adore its holiness, justice, and grace!

God's Glory

God's Glory
Charles Spurgeon

"The heavens declare the glory of God."
Psalm 19:1


The book of nature has three leaves: heaven, earth, and sea. Heaven is the first and the most glorious, and by its aid we are able to see the beauties of the other two. Any book without its first page would be sadly imperfect; especially the great Natural Bible, since its first pages--the sun, moon, and stars--supply light to the rest of the volume and are thus the keys without which the writing which follows would be dark and undiscernible. Man walking erect was evidently made to scan the skies, and he who begins to read creation by studying the stars begins the book at the right place.

The heavens are plural for their variety, comprising the watery heavens with their clouds of countless forms, the aerial heavens with their calms and tempests, the solar heavens with all the glories of the day, and the starry heavens with all the marvels of the night. What the Heaven of heavens must be has not entered into the heart of man. Any part of creation has more instruction in it than human mind will ever exhaust, but the celestial realm is peculiarly rich in spiritual lore. 

The heavens declare, or are declaring, for the continuance of their testimony is intended by the participles employed. Every moment God's existence, power, wisdom, and goodness are being sounded abroad by the heavenly heralds which shine upon us from above. He who would guess at divine sublimity should gaze upward into the starry vault. He who would imagine infinity must peer into the boundless expanse. He who desires to see divine wisdom should consider the balancing of the orbs. He who would know divine fidelity must mark the regularity of the planetary motions. And he who would attain some conceptions of divine power, greatness, and majesty must estimate the forces of attraction, the magnitude of the fixed stars, and the brightness of the whole celestial train. 

It is not merely glory that the heavens declare, but the "glory of God," for they deliver to us such unanswerable arguments for a conscious, intelligent, planning, controlling, and presiding Creator, that no unpredjudiced person can remain unconvinced by them. The testimony given by the heavens is no mere hint, but a plain unmistakable declaration, and it is a declaration of the most constant and abiding kind. Yet for all this, to what avail is the loudest declaration to a deaf man, or the clearest showing to one spiritually blind? God the Holy Ghost must illuminate us, or all the suns in the milky way never will.

"The firmament shows his handiwork." The expanse is full of the works of the Lord's skillful, creating hands (hands being attributed to the great creating Spirit to set forth his care and workmanlike action, and to meet the poor comprehension of mortals). It is humbling to find that even when the most devout and elevated minds are desirous to express their loftiest thoughts of God, they must use words and metaphors drawn from the earth. We are children and must each confess, "I think as a child, I speak as a child." In the expanse above us God flies, as it were, his starry flag to show that the King is at home, and hangs out his escutcheon that atheists may see how he despises their denunciations of him. He who looks up to the firmament and then writes himself down an atheist, brands himself at the same moment as an idiot or a liar.

"There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard." Every man may hear the voices of the stars. Many are the languages of terrestrials, but to celestials there is but one, and that one may be understood by every willing mind. The lowest heathens are without excuse if they do not discover the invisible things of God in the works which he has made. Sun, moon, and stars are God's traveling preachers; they are apostles upon their journey confirming those who regard the Lord, and judges on circuit condemning those who worship idols.


Treasury of David