Watch His hand!

(James Smith, "Direction For the Perplexed" 1865)

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him — and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

This implies that God is always present with us, is willing to be consulted by us, and will surely attend to us.

This implies that our way is likely to be difficult, dark, and perplexing; a way in which we have never traveled before, and in which we are likely to be misled.

This implies that only way to be safe, to walk securely — is to seek Divine direction; and this God is willing to give — but He will have us ask it of Him. We are dependents — and we must realize our dependence. We are but children — and we must feel it, and act as under the impression of it.

"In all your ways acknowledge Him."

You have His Word — consult it; make it your counselor, your directory and your guide.

You have His promise — believe it; He says, "I will teach you and instruct you in the way which you shall go, I will guide you with My eye."

You have His throne of grace — flee to it, and plead with Him as a man pleads with his friend.

And, while you consult His Word, believe His promise, and pray for direction — watch His hand!Providence is God working; working to accomplish His purposes, to fulfill His promises, and to answer the prayers of His people.

In His Word — He speaks to us;
on His throne — He listens to us,
by His providence — He works for us, and those who keep their eye open — will be sure to see His hand.

While you watch His hand — seek grace to submit to His will. He wills to do you good, the greatest good; and if His will crosses yours, depend upon it — it is just because it is most for your benefit.

Gratefully acknowledge His favors as you receive them. Remember that, as sinful creatures, being criminals and traitors — we have no "rights".
Consequently, everything short of hell — is a mercy!
Everything but eternal punishment — is a favor!
How many favors and mercies you receive — and how few praises you render!
How many mercies are given you — and how few acknowledgments you make!

He who habitually . . .
  consults God's holy Word,
  believes His faithful promises,
  pleads at His gracious throne for direction,
  watches His working hand,
  submits to His righteous will, and
  gratefully acknowledges His sovereign favors —
will never be allowed to go far wrong, or to go wrong for long; for "He shall direct your steps!"

~  ~  ~  ~

The Rest!

(James Smith, "The Rest!" 1865)

"There remains therefore a rest for the people of God." Hebrews 4:9

We shall consider these words as referring to HEAVENLY rest:our Father's house,
our Savior's home, and
our eternal dwelling-place!

To the weary and way-worn — there is something delightful in the thought of REST, and they love to think of Heaven as the place where they shall "rest from their labors."

REST gives us the idea of . . .
repose — the calm, quiet repose of the soul; 
refreshment — the refreshment of the exhausted spirit after conflict, sickness, or toil;
restoration to vigor — after debility, languor, and fainting.

Heaven will be a rest . . .
from sin — which will no more grieve us;
from sorrow — which will no more trouble and distress us;
from fears — which will no more harass and perplex us; and
from conflicts — which will no more agitate and suppress us.

It will be a rest . . .
with God in His glory,
with Jesus in His immediate presence,
with saints and holy angels in full perfection and blessedness.

This rest is FUTURE — it remains for the people of God.

This rest is the object of our hope and DESIRE. We look forward to it, with holy longing and cheering anticipations.

This rest is PERFECT — free from all mixture of anything that will agitate, give pain, or cause grief.

This rest is UNINTERRUPTED — nothing will ever occur to disturb, distress, or agitate us any more.

This rest is GLORIOUS — as bright as the meridian sun, as balmy as the most pleasant morning, asglowing with holiness, splendor, and majesty.

This rest is ETERNAL — and this is best of all. The possibility of a change, of a return to former scenes — would spoil all. But that rest will be enduring — as changeless as the Divine nature, and as glorious as the Divine perfections.

Blessed be God for such a rest for the weary, suffering, and downcast believer in Jesus! Oh, to keep the eye fixed upon it, and the heart expecting it — amidst all the troubles and trials of time!

This rest is FOR the redeemed people of God. They are now a poor, tried, tempted, and restless people; strangers and pilgrims upon the earth, as all their fathers were.

Satan tempts them,
sinners try them,
fears harass them,
Providence perplexes them,
and they often cry out, "O that I had wings like a dove — then would I fly away and be at rest!"

Believer, let the prospect of this eternal glorious rest, cheer you in toil and trouble! Your work will soon be finished, your trouble will soon come to an end — and then rest — the glorious rest, remains for you!

Let your Heavenly rest, quicken your pace homewards! You are going to a rest — a perfect,uninterrupted, and eternal rest — a rest in Heaven, a rest with Jesus, a rest in the presence of yourGod forever! Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, and press on towards the mark, cheered by the prospect of the end of the race.

Remember, Christian, this rest is SECURE, for Jesus has taken possession of it for you. "I am going," said He, "to prepare a place for you." Yes, Jesus has gone there for you, He has taken possession in your name, He is preparing your place, and will soon come and receive you to Himself!

Remember too, that it is NEAR — very near. Perhaps much nearer than you may think!

You may be sighing, sorrowing, striving, wrestling, doubting, fearing, and cast down today; andtomorrow you may be in your Heavenly rest!

Today, you may be lying like Lazarus, at the rich man's gate, full of sores; tomorrow, you may be basking in the beams of Immanuel's glory!

Today, you may be on the bed of sickness, suffering, and pain; tomorrow, you may be in the presence of Jesus, where there is no more pain, neither sorrow nor crying!

Who can tell how near we all are to our Heavenly and everlasting rest?

Remember also, that your very trials, toils, and sufferings here on earth, may SWEETEN your rest to you! And that soon, very soon — you may be rejoicing over your present sorrows, and praising God for what now fills you with grief and sadness. Things will look very different there — from what they do here. Never, never forget, then, in your darkest nights, in your most trying days, in the midst of every storm and tempest, when passing over burning sands and under a scorching sky — that there remains a rest for the people of God, and a rest for you!

"Arise and depart; for this is not your resting place, because it is defiled, it is ruined, beyond all remedy!"

"There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary are at rest!"

~  ~  ~  ~

Behold the Man!

(James Smith, 1865)

"Behold the Man!" John 19:5

They scourge Him, crown Him with thorns, clothe Him with an old purple robe, smite Him with their fists — and now Pilate brings Him forth, saying, "Behold the Man!"

In His whole life He was holy, harmless, undefiled, full of mercy, and went about doing good. Yet, because He condemned sin, and required submission to God's righteousness — He was hated, persecuted, and murdered!

Let us behold this Man! He exercised all the virtues which could adorn humanity. See His meekness, gentleness, patience, faith, fortitude, pity, and perfect love to God and man. O lovely character! O perfect pattern of holiness!

Behold — and adore Him heartily.
Behold — and trust in Him implicitly.
My soul, behold the man!

See . . .
  His grief-stricken countenance,
  His battered frame,
  His breaking heart,
  His bleeding brow;
He is enduring all this for you! 

Behold Him, and . . .
  do not doubt His love,
  nor question His veracity,
  nor fear your foes,
  nor dread your heavenly Father's wrath!

Behold Him, as . . .
  the proof of God's love to you,
  the confirmation of all the promises made to you, 
  the pledge of all the blessings set before you.

Behold Him — and sympathize with Him; look on the pierced One, and "mourn for Him."

Behold Him — and give yourself afresh unto Him!

Behold Him — and crucify your flesh with its passions and lusts.

Behold Him — until a deep impression is made upon your heart, and the love of sin departs!

Behold Him — if tempted to murmur, or complain, or repine at any of the dispensations of Divine Providence.

Behold Him — when Satan or the world allures you to sin, or would draw you away from your God.

Behold Him — when death stares you in the face, and the grave is ready for you.

"Behold the Man!" 

Behold — and love Him more!
Behold — and imitate Him more!
Behold — and serve Him more!

May the Man of Sorrows be daily before my eye!

And may I also behold Him — coming in power and great glory! What a contrast will there be, between His first and second coming:
His cross — and His throne;
His crown of thorns — and His crown of glory;
as He appeared before Pilate and the Jewish rabble — and as surrounded with all the armies of heaven, and all His saints with Him!

"Behold the Man!"

~  ~  ~  ~

The eye of God!

(James Smith, "God's Knowledge of Us" 1865)

"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account!" Hebrews 4:13

"The Lord searches every heart and understands the intention of every thought!" 1 Chronicles 28:9

"I am the one who searches out the thoughts and intentions of every person!" Revelation 2:23 

"O Lord, You know!" Jeremiah 15:15

God's perfect knowledge, is like the pillar-cloud which led Israel out of Egypt, and through the wilderness: it is dark and a cause of terror to His enemies — but it is light and a source of comfort to His children.

"O Lord, You know" my SINS and FOLLIES! No one else does. No one else ever will. How could I look anyone in the face — if I thought he knew what was passing in my heart, or what is transacted in the chambers of my imagination within!

The Lord alone can search the heart. He alone knows the worst of us — and He alone knows thebest; for the best and the worst, are both concealed in the same heart. The eye of God sees . . .
  every motive,
  every thought,
  every lust,
  every action!

His eye is on that mysterious portion of our nature, called the imagination, on which such strange pictures are often painted, in which such fearful scenes are sometimes transacted. "You know myfolly, O God; my guilt is not hidden from You!" Psalm 69:5

What streams of moral filthiness sometimes flow from the heart into the imagination! How difficult sometimes to keep it back. 

What a depth of pollution there is within us!

What billows of corruption sometimes roll and swell!

Little does the young Christian think — what the pure and holy eye of God sees within him; and what his own eye will one day discover, filling him with alarm — if not with horror, with shame and self-loathing! Then he will enter into poor Job's confession, "Behold, I am vile!" and into Isaiah's exclamation, "Woe is me! I am undone!"
"What more can I say unto You? For You know Your servant, O Sovereign Lord!" 2 Samuel 7:20

But blessed be God, the righteousness of Jesus covers all — and conceals all; and the grace and Spirit of God will ultimately purge away the whole foul heap from us!

Now our iniquities are forgiven, and our sins are covered; but then our natures will be perfectly purified, and be as white as the falling snow! "Beloved, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is!" 1 John 3:2

~  ~  ~  ~

Prone to wander!

(James Smith, "Christ Exalted, Saints Comforted, and Sinners Directed" 1855)

"My people have wandered, and have forgotten their resting place." Jeremiah 50:6

Even true Christians are prone to wander from their resting place. Every sinner is a wanderer, and while sin dwells within us — we shall always feel a disposition to wander. This is against our better judgment, our solemn profession, and our new nature — yet still there is thedisposition to wander, and it is called into exercise by a variety of things:

1. A love of novelty — a desire to see, possess, or enjoy something new — will sometimes set us wandering.

2. The weakness of our graces, as faith, hope, and love — is at other times the occasion of it.

3. The power of corruption within us, which at times works with peculiar force and power — makes us restless.

4. The temptations of Satan, which beguile, bewilder, and captivate us — lead us from our resting-place also.

5. And so do the errors that abound and spread all around us.

False views, Satanic temptations, powerful corruptions, and the weakness of grace — are the principal things which lie at the root of our backslidings.

Reader, are you a restless wanderer?
If so, return, return unto Jesus.
Go to Him, and confess your sins.
Go to Him, and entreat His pardon.
Go to Him, and prove the kindness of His heart.
Go to Him, and be happy once more in His grace and love.

O Savior, bring me back from all my wanderings by Your invincible grace; let me enjoy rest in Your precious love, and keep me near Your loving heart and bleeding side forever!

~  ~  ~  ~

Growing Pains - T. Austin Sparks

"Open Windows"  by T. Austin Sparks

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. (Hebrews 12:7 NIV)

The Lord may get you off activities and shut you up to inactivity. You go through an awful time and say that the Lord has forsaken you and that all has gone wrong. What is it really? Why, it is growing pains! In the long run, it was not all wrong... it was all right. You came to know the Lord, whereas - before - your whole life was taken up with things. You have been shut up, but you have come to know the Lord inwardly; and you have come to a state of spiritual efficiency which is so much greater than before that you can now cope with the external situation. He was misunderstood, but He was working unto your efficiency - exercising you unto efficiency. These growing pains are terrible, but you cannot help anyone who is suffering from growing pains; you must just stand aside and watch him going through.

So through numerous and various directions, this growth takes place by the painful exercise which is produced from the way the Lord is dealing with us. We do learn through suffering. Even the Lord Jesus was made "full grown" - complete - in this sense through suffering. We take the same way unto full growth. It is child training, discipline - learning by way of experience. That is chastening - making us sons out of children, full grown men out of infants.

By T. Austin-Sparks from: “Maturity - The Lord’s Desire For His People”

And I Will put my Spirit Within You - A.B. Simpson

And I will put my spirit within you
By A.B. Simpson


This state spoken of by Ezekiel is much more than a new heart. It is a heart filled with the Holy Spirit, the Divine Spirit, the power that causes us to walk in God's commandments. This is the greatest crisis that comes to a Christian: when into the spirit that was renewed in conversion, God Himself comes to dwell, to make it His abiding place, and to hold it by His mighty power in holiness and righteousness.

After this occurs, one would suppose that we would be lifted up into a much more hopeful and exuberant spirit, but the prophet gives a very different picture. He says when this comes to pass we shall loathe ourselves in our own eyes.

 The revelation of God conveys a profound sense of our own nothingness and worthlessness and lays us on our face in the dust in self-denial. The incoming of the Holy Spirit displaces self and disgraces self forever. The highest holiness is to walk in self-renunciation.