For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. 15 “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place, whoever reads, let him understand.” (Matthew 24:7)
1. Aliya- First we have what is called the “Aliya” or “gathering” of Israel back into their home land. (Ezek 28:25) “Thus says the Lord God: When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and manifest my holiness in them in the sight of the nations, then they shall settle on their own soil that I gave to my servant Jacob.” This particular prophesy has been taking place for a while now, and continues to take place as Jews continuously, before our eyes, return to the land of Israel.
2. On May 15, 1948 the nation of Israel was established and recognized. One thing we know for sure is that God can not lie, and that is what makes prophesy so unique. Every Word shall come to pass. God has put His stamp of approval upon the Word of God; He even holds His Word above His name. With this stern promise, we can lean upon prophesy as our cane, a cane which supports us, holds us up, as we walk through these “Last Days.” Now that Israel is established, many of the other prophesy’s can be fulfilled, like the one where Israel is a burden to all the other countries.
3. “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows.” [Mark 13:8] It seems to be that these will be the kick off of many sorrows in the Last Days. Watching the news on the television, we can see these events are rapidly growing and taking place in the world today.
4. “For nations shall rise against nations”- with my understanding, it sounds like more of a world-wide war here in this text, rather than a battle for some territorial rights between two nations. In the year 1914, the World Wars began and did not get resolved, so to speak, until the end of World War II in 1945. But then you have the Cold War which lasted from the mid 1940s until the 1990s. Nevertheless, the world is not going to be content with each other until the Anti-Christ comes in with a Peace Plan, and then there is only about three and half to seven years before the reign of Christ; then and only then will there be an everlasting peace.
5. Earthquakes- It is not that earthquakes are scary in and of them self; it is where the earthquakes take place that is so scary. (San Francisco is a good example). Many major cities have been found to be established on top of major fault lines. If an earthquake happened out in the middle of nowhere, it would not get the attention of the people. But when an earthquake destroys cities or even takes many lives, then people begin to wonder why all these horrible things are happening. The text also mentions that they will be in various places, and we are seeing earthquakes today all over the world! God, in the history of mankind, has used nature to get the attention of the people in hopes that they will repent from their wickedness and turn to Him. He is the One who has all the answers to life’s most difficult questions. It is a good thing when people are stirred up with questions that they don’t have the answers to; it is like their hearts are being tilled up for the seed to be planted.
6. Famines- If we spend five minutes on the television, we will see that there is a widespread of famines across the world. One of the major issues in politics is global warming, and the main thing this effects is famine, due to the climate changes. Since famines have been taking place throughout all of history, we must assume that He was talking about an increase in famine, like that never seen before, or else it would not have much significance. Famines in the these last days could also turn a little violent. What would happen if a major country like that of China, Japan, or Russia were to have a devastating famine? Could they go hunting for food by preying upon other smaller countries? That is what happens in the animal kingdom. When a dominated country lacks food supply, they will turn to attack another weaker vessel. Current News: Right now we are looking at some major climate change in: Africa and South Asia, who could face famines. Brooklyn, Canada, Feb 1 (IPS) - Climate change will cause major disruptions in the global food system, and adaptation to those changes needs to begin immediately, experts say. Otherwise one-fifth of the world's population could starve and millions of others become climate refugees, forced by heat and drought to abandon their lands and hunt for food elsewhere in the coming decades. To prevent this nightmarish future, researcher David Lobell says the world community should focus its efforts where climate threats are likely to make the greatest impacts. [By: Stephen Leahy]
7. Wars and Rumors of Wars- “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” [Matthew 24:6] Although there have been wars throughout all of time, it seems here that Jesus was speaking of wars all over the world, and with the emphasis added, “See that you are not troubled,” leads me to believe that it will be a little more scary than the other wars. Maybe it will be times when it looks like the world is going to end, as a result of the wars going on. With the nuclear weapons that are in the hands of many different countries around the world, rumors of wars are scarier than ever. Now many people are troubled today with the fear of global annihilation. All I have to say to them is this, “Let not your heart be troubled, for the end is not yet, these things must come to past first.” Global peace that takes care of these wars is what the world is currently looking for. This peace plan will probably kick off the downward spiral of ending events, because it will usher in the need of the Anti-Christ, who will seem to have all the answers.
8. Pestilence- (Luke 21:11) “There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.” According to the Webster’s Dictionary, the word pestilence means: 1: a contagious or infectious epidemic disease that is virulent and devastating; 2: something that is destructive or pernicious. If you look at the vast number of diseases now days, the numbers are shocking. According to UCLA School of Public Health / Department of Epidemiology Instructors: Layne / Fall 2008, there are over fifty seven worldwide deaths per year due to diseases.
9. Perilous Times will come- “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come;” [2 Timothy 3:1] Paul goes on to describe the attributes or “character traits” of the state of man in this particular set of time. The list is stunningly shocking when you compare these traits to those in the world today. If you are old enough to remember the early 1900s, than you can clearly see this dramatic inclination of evil in the world and it’s tolerance among civilization. The church must take heed to Paul’s warning here, seeing that it is clearly directed to us. What did he say to do, “…from such turn away.” II Timothy 4:5
10. False Christ’s- For false christ’s and false prophets will rise and show
great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. [Matthew 24:4] Wikipedia has listed 720 people who have actually claimed to be the Messiah, directly, or indirectly by their followers. It is clearly evident that people in this day in age have no real knowledge of God, nor any fear. In Orlando FL, there was a big rally with millions of people who came to see some guy that was claiming to be the Messiah, who was declaring peace and prosperity. The people had the number 666 written on their shirts and tattooed on their body. This world is prepared to receive the anti-Christ with open arms, as well as take the mark of the beast. Good news to the Christian: it won’t happen until we are gone! Let us warn those to who are in our path, and let us keep our eyes in heaven awaiting His return! Amen.
11. False Prophets- in the Bible, the false prophets were those who perverted the word of God and /or the Gospel. “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” [Galatians 1:8] In a literal sense, anyone who preaches any other doctrine pertaining to eternal life other than through faith in Jesus Christ, are to be considered false prophets. Also note the emphasis here, “Let them be accursed.” They seem to receive a stricter judgment. One thing is true, and that is the fact that God has given man free-will to do that which he pleases, but when they attack His Word or His children, He takes the matters very serious. To the nation of Israel He said, “I will bless them that bless thee, and I will curse them that curse thee.” And in this text to the Galatians, Paul clearly tells us that those who pervert the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be accursed.
12. Rebuilding of the Temple- “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place, whoever reads, let him understand.” In order for this to take place; the Israelites must first have a temple for this guy to commit this abomination. Well with all the Israelites back in Israel in 1948, they were excited to start their plans for the rebuilding of the temple. In 1967 however, the Arabs recaptured the Temple Mount, and the Jewish nation wept. Right now the Israelites are looking for some help gaining back this sacred Temple Mount. What a perfect opportunity for the Anti-Christ to step in with a plan and deceive the Israelites with a plan to regain control and rebuild. This could happen at any time, and it is uncertain whether the Rapture will be before or after this event.
13. Israel will become a cup of trembling, and a burden to all nations. “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” [Zechariah 12:2-3] The nation of Israel has been in and out of affliction their whole life. Even if you have never met a Jew, if you have any heart at all, it has to go out to the people of this nation. They have suffered as a whole, more than any other nation or “peoples group” in the history of mankind. They have fought against all odds, and the God of the Heavens has been there to see that they remain. One day the nations will rise up against Israel, thinking they have a sure victory. Nevertheless, God will protect her with His outstretched arm, and all the nations will fear and tremble at the Almighty God of Israel.
14. The Burden- His promise to them was that though they may be scattered amongst the nations, they would not be utterly wiped out. He was faithful to His promise and like a hen gathers her chicks, so has the Heavenly Father begun to gather His children of Israel back into their homeland. However, their troubles are not over. One day in the future, as Zechariah prophesied, all nations will be gathered against her to wipe her out. Little by little the nation of Israel is dropping alliances. Soon they will be left alone, forsaken by her companions and will have to turn to the Lord their God for help. If you know the nation of Israel in its current spiritual state, you will find it most shocking. Tel Aviv, the Capital of Israel, is known for being the most homo-sexual city in the world. Certainly the fear of the Lord is not in a lot of them, and maybe it will take a scare like that of the nations rising up against her, that she will find repentance.
15. The great apostasy or falling away- (2 Th. 2:3; Matt.24:10) “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition.” The people Paul was writing to here needed some truth straightened out concerning the time when they would be gathered unto Jesus Christ. They had received false news, probably from a false prophet or teacher, which got them worrying as if they missed out on the gathering of the Church unto Christ. The day here Paul is talking about is the actual “Second Coming of Jesus Christ.” There will be a time when the Church takes a big plunge in the wrong direction: morally, spiritually, and though it is sad but true, many in the church will actually fall away from the truth of the Gospel. Take a look at all the different routes, major (or minor) denominations, have taken in the last 100 years, 50 years, or 10 years. It is shocking what pastors are professing behind the pulpits and on the news. Many are watering down the Gospel of Christ. Many are trying to chip away at the narrow gate in order to make it a little wider. It sounds like this falling away that Paul is talking about is going to be big, something different from the previous history of the Church. My friend, we are in a great falling away right now. Therefore, I urge you brothers and sisters in the Lord, to cling unto the Lord in these last days. Search the scriptures for yourself, be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s guidance as you read the Word, and put your trust in Him. The best way to not be deceived is to go straight to the Lord Himself, open up the Bible, and trust Him. And when you know the Lord, then go seek a church that bears the same fruit as you. Amen
16. Mourning for the One They Pierced- “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.” Here is a beautiful picture of a future day (time or period) when the Lord Jesus will be recognized as the Jewish Messiah. The Jews right now do not believe that Jesus is the Messiah, unless they are Messianic Jews. So here we get some insight of the Jews future encounter with their beloved Messiah, the One they crucified, the One whom still loves them oh so dearly. This very well might be the day where Jesus walks through the Eastern Gate and sets Himself up as King over all the Earth. What a beautiful picture of grace here: the One whom they pierced has come back, and now pours His Spirit of grace and supplication out over the ones who rejected Him for over 2,000 years. It will be a day with much tears, but I believe He will wipe every tear away, and then we will all worship the Worthy Lamb of God as one Body, both Jews and Gentiles.
17. The Man of Sin Revealed- (2 Th. 2:3) “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” Perhaps will be the center and turning point of the Great Tribulation. First there will be three and a half years of peace, perhaps beginning with the absence of Christians due to the Rapture. Some often think that the Church should bring peace into the world. This is not so, in the sense of the whole world reaping some kind of physical peace from the Church. The Lord Himself declared that He did not come to bring peace, but a sword. The Church is the Light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness never enjoys the presence of light. With the Church gone, the world can peacefully follow their own patters; without the conflict of Christianity.
18. The Jews will be delivered up and killed- (Matt.24:9) “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you…” Some teach that this text is speaking of the persecution of His disciples, or Christians in general. Although this is true, what He is speaking of is a massive persecution of the Jews during the tribulation. The Anti-Christ will turn on the Jews, and many will be killed, except the remnant of Jews to whom God has sealed (144,000). Once the Anti-Christ sets himself up in the temple, the Jews are heavily warned by Jesus to flee to the mountains (Petra), where they will be preserved through the Great Tribulation for 3 ½ years.
19. Lawlessness will increase- (Matt.24:12) “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” Lawlessness is simply the absence of God in a society. It is impossible to have a non-corrupt Godless society. God, through the Holy Spirit, is what holds this economy together, who keeps us from utterly destroying ourselves, and who brings goodness to a dark world. But this world is doing all that it can to remove God out of the picture. The world rejects God because it is evil, and it wants to remain evil. People do not want the presence of God because, in the presence of God the truth is revealed, that is, their evil deeds are exposed. Here are two unfailing spiritual laws of God that coincide: 1. God is love, and if you know not God than you do not know love; 2. In Him there is no darkness. Therefore we conclude that if you remove God, you remove love.
20. Lovers of themselves- (II Timothy 3:1-5) “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” Here the text shows us many things pertaining to the degrading of morals as well as the increase of selfishness in the last days. All of these character traits that Paul list here are all rooted and grounded from a life of self. If you look around the world, all of the so called wise psychologists say that the root of a healthy life is to first love yourself. You hear things like, “If you can’t love yourself, than who can you love.” We have become the center of our own universe. The true reason why people never find a quench for their thirst is because Jesus is the only One who can satisfy it. I think what Paul was saying was that in the end of days, which we are evidently in; men will become their own gods.
21. New World Order- In order to usher in the Anti-Christ, where the whole world receives Him, or at least the dominating powers, there will have to be sort of a stage set up for him. Here is what I think. The world is going to be struggling with a major world-wide crisis in which it cannot resolve on its own. There is going to be much hostility between the nations due to this, and the world is going to be longing for peace. Then out of nowhere a man will rise up, who has the countenance of a lamb, meaning he will appear to be an innocent man, whom people adore, and have a mouth like that of a dragon, meaning he will speak boldly and authoritively. “And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.” (Revelation 13:11) This man will be exactly what the world is looking for, and he will seem to be wise in his plans of reformation. Then after he is set up, he will turn and demand worship of himself.
22. Mark of the Beast- (Revelation 13:17) He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. The mark of the beast connects perfectly with the New World Order that the Anti-Christ will try to establish. Everyone who receives this mark will have the rights of normal citizenship, such as: buying and selling goods. Whoever does not receive the mark, not only will it be hard to find food, but they will be hunted down and killed for rejecting the mark. The mark will be one of the acts of worship demanded by the beast. Many have made different suggestions concerning the identity of this mark. Although we know where it will be, we do not know what it will be. The mark will be located on the right hand, or the forehead. Two different suggestions that are likely to be it are either a tattoo of some sort or a chip implanted under the skin. The technology for these chips is already being experimented. This would allow the beast to locate everyone, as well as control the buying and selling of all goods; and if you do not have the chip, than you will not be able to check out.
23. Re-gaining the Temple Mount- In order for the Temple to be re-built, which must take place before the Abomination of Desolation, the Jews will have to work something out with the Arabs who have possession of the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount is the location where the Temple used to be, and they will not build the Temple anywhere else. The Jews today are longing to have their Temple built, and they will not rest until it happens. To the Jews, the Temple must be up and going in order for their worship to God be complete; where they can offer up sacrifices, and go through their rituals. It will be interesting to see what happens in our lifetime with this situation with the Temple. I think it might become a problem as the Jews zealously desire to have their land back and the Temple built.
24. Armageddon- (Revelation 16:14, 16) “14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 16 And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.” When the time is come, these demons will be let loose to go and gather up the kings of the earth for the battle of the Great Day. Here is where all nations will fall by the sword that comes forth out of the mouth of Jesus Christ. The battle will be so great that blood will be up to the horses bridle spread over 200 miles.
25. Millennial Reign of Christ- for 1000 years, Jesus will reign on this earth and bring restoration to all that has been destroyed by the works of Satan and man. His Saints will be with Him, and they will carry out His commands throughout all the earth. In the ministry of Jesus, He often taught on the importance of what we do in this life. Perhaps, with what we are faithful with in this life will determine what will be given to us when He comes back to reign for 1000 years. To those who are faithful with the small things, him it will be given more. He who is not faithful with what the Lord has given him, even it shall be taken away. Nevertheless, whether or not you are given much, you will be full of joy just to be in the presence of the Lord. Let this mind be in you: that those who are least in this life will be called greatest in Heaven, and those who are great in this life will be called the least in Heaven. I think, that those tears which Jesus will wipe away, will be the tears of those who wish they would have done more for the Lamb who is so worthy. Whatever the tears are from, they will be wiped away with the precious Hand of God.
What can satisfy my heart?
"It is neither knowledge nor prophecy that can satisfy the heart; but the thought that Jesus is coming to take me to Himself is the blessed hope of one who is atached to Him by grace." -J.N. Darby
"The root of all virtue and grace"
The root of all virtue and grace-of all faith and acceptable worship-is that we know that we have nothing but what we recieve, and we bow in deepest humility to wait upon God for it. -Andrew Murray-
What Our Forefathers Believed
Did you know that 52 of the 55 signers of the Declaration of
Independence were orthodox, deeply committed Christians?
The other three all believed in the Bible as the divine truth, the
God of scripture, and His personal intervention.
It is the same Congress that formed the American Bible Society. Immediately after
creating the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress voted to purchase
and import 20,000 copies of scripture for the people of this nation.
Patrick Henry, who is called the firebrand of the American Revolution, is still
remembered for his words, "Give me liberty or give me death." But in current textbooks the context of these words is deleted. Here is what he actually said: "An appeal to arms and the God of hosts is all that is left us. But we shall not fight our battle alone. There is a just God that presides over the destinies of nations. The battle sir, is not to the strong alone. Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it almighty God. I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death."
These sentences have been erased from our textbooks. Was Patrick Henry a Christian?
The following year, 1776, he wrote this "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too
often that this great Nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here."
Consider these words that Thomas Jefferson wrote on the front of his well-worn Bible: "I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon be rallied to the unity of our Creator." He was also the chairman of the American Bible Society, which he considered his highest and most important role.
On July 4, 1821, President Adams said, "The highest glory of the American Revolution
was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity."
Calvin Coolidge, our 30th President of the United States reaffirmed this truth when he wrote, "The foundations of our society and our government rest so much on the
teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically universal in our country."
In 1782, the United States Congress voted this resolution: "The Congress of the UnitedStates recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools."
William Holmes McGuffey is the author of the McGuffey Reader, which was used for
over 100 years in our public schools with over 125 million copies sold until it was
stopped in 1963. President Lincoln called him the "Schoolmaster of the Nation."
Listen to these words of Mr. McGuffey: "The Christian religion is the religion of our country. From it are derived our notions on the character of God, on the great moral Governor of the universe. On its doctrines are founded the peculiarities of our free institutions. From no source has the author drawn more conspicuously
than from the sacred Scriptures. From all these extracts from the Bible I
make no apology."
Of the first 108 universities founded in America, 106 were distinctly Christian, including the first, Harvard University, chartered in 1636. In the original Harvard Student Handbook, rule number 1 was that students seeking entrance must know Latin and Greek so that they could study the scriptures: "Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ, which is eternal life, John 17:3; and therefore to lay Jesus Christ as the only foundation for our children to follow the moral principles of the Ten Commandments.
James Madison, the primary author of the Constitution of the United States, said this: "We have staked the whole future of our new nation not upon the power of
government; far from it. We have staked the future of all our political
constitutions upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves
according to the moral principles of the Ten Commandments."
We ask God to bless America. But, how can He bless a Nation that has departed so far
from Him? Prior to September 11, He was not welcome in America. Most of what you
read in this article has been erased from our textbooks. Revisionists have rewritten
history to remove the truth about our country's Christian roots.
Independence were orthodox, deeply committed Christians?
The other three all believed in the Bible as the divine truth, the
God of scripture, and His personal intervention.
It is the same Congress that formed the American Bible Society. Immediately after
creating the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress voted to purchase
and import 20,000 copies of scripture for the people of this nation.
Patrick Henry, who is called the firebrand of the American Revolution, is still
remembered for his words, "Give me liberty or give me death." But in current textbooks the context of these words is deleted. Here is what he actually said: "An appeal to arms and the God of hosts is all that is left us. But we shall not fight our battle alone. There is a just God that presides over the destinies of nations. The battle sir, is not to the strong alone. Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it almighty God. I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death."
These sentences have been erased from our textbooks. Was Patrick Henry a Christian?
The following year, 1776, he wrote this "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too
often that this great Nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here."
Consider these words that Thomas Jefferson wrote on the front of his well-worn Bible: "I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon be rallied to the unity of our Creator." He was also the chairman of the American Bible Society, which he considered his highest and most important role.
On July 4, 1821, President Adams said, "The highest glory of the American Revolution
was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity."
Calvin Coolidge, our 30th President of the United States reaffirmed this truth when he wrote, "The foundations of our society and our government rest so much on the
teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically universal in our country."
In 1782, the United States Congress voted this resolution: "The Congress of the UnitedStates recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools."
William Holmes McGuffey is the author of the McGuffey Reader, which was used for
over 100 years in our public schools with over 125 million copies sold until it was
stopped in 1963. President Lincoln called him the "Schoolmaster of the Nation."
Listen to these words of Mr. McGuffey: "The Christian religion is the religion of our country. From it are derived our notions on the character of God, on the great moral Governor of the universe. On its doctrines are founded the peculiarities of our free institutions. From no source has the author drawn more conspicuously
than from the sacred Scriptures. From all these extracts from the Bible I
make no apology."
Of the first 108 universities founded in America, 106 were distinctly Christian, including the first, Harvard University, chartered in 1636. In the original Harvard Student Handbook, rule number 1 was that students seeking entrance must know Latin and Greek so that they could study the scriptures: "Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ, which is eternal life, John 17:3; and therefore to lay Jesus Christ as the only foundation for our children to follow the moral principles of the Ten Commandments.
James Madison, the primary author of the Constitution of the United States, said this: "We have staked the whole future of our new nation not upon the power of
government; far from it. We have staked the future of all our political
constitutions upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves
according to the moral principles of the Ten Commandments."
We ask God to bless America. But, how can He bless a Nation that has departed so far
from Him? Prior to September 11, He was not welcome in America. Most of what you
read in this article has been erased from our textbooks. Revisionists have rewritten
history to remove the truth about our country's Christian roots.
The Power of Weakness
-Author Unkwown-
In My Kingdom, I send the mouth of babes to still the avenger. I empower the foolish to confound the wise. The cowards are given holy boldness. The meek are raised to possess the spoils of war.
I do not intend weakness to shame. Rather, weakness is a mark of honor. For only through weakness can My full complete power rest upon your life. If I place you in an environment of weakness, it is because there is an assignment for you that will be hindered any other way.
The strength of flesh has no might in the unseen world. The enemy lies, telling the world there is strength in control, intimidation, debate, intellect, mastery. He puffs up man with these false securities, for darkness is desperately afraid of weakness. Weakness that empties self in any form leaves one vulnerable to depend upon Me. Within that dependence I am released to work greater victories to defeat the realm of darkness.
Rejoice in weakness. It is not something to fear. Rather glory in it, that My full miraculous power may be dispatched without hindrance.
I Cor 1:20-31, I Cor 2:1-5, I Cor 15:43, Heb 11:34
My grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. II Co 12:9
In My Kingdom, I send the mouth of babes to still the avenger. I empower the foolish to confound the wise. The cowards are given holy boldness. The meek are raised to possess the spoils of war.
I do not intend weakness to shame. Rather, weakness is a mark of honor. For only through weakness can My full complete power rest upon your life. If I place you in an environment of weakness, it is because there is an assignment for you that will be hindered any other way.
The strength of flesh has no might in the unseen world. The enemy lies, telling the world there is strength in control, intimidation, debate, intellect, mastery. He puffs up man with these false securities, for darkness is desperately afraid of weakness. Weakness that empties self in any form leaves one vulnerable to depend upon Me. Within that dependence I am released to work greater victories to defeat the realm of darkness.
Rejoice in weakness. It is not something to fear. Rather glory in it, that My full miraculous power may be dispatched without hindrance.
I Cor 1:20-31, I Cor 2:1-5, I Cor 15:43, Heb 11:34
My grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. II Co 12:9
Oh Wretched Man that I Am! By: Andrew Murray
"O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 7:24, 25).
You know the wonderful place that this text has in the wonderful epistle to the Romans. It stands here at the end of the seventh chapter as the gateway into the eighth. In the first sixteen verses of the eighth chapter the name of the Holy Spirit is found sixteen times; you have there the description and promise of the life that a child of God can live in the power of the Holy Ghost. This begins in the second verse: "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." From that Paul goes on to speak of the great privileges of the child of God, who is to be led by the Spirit of God. The gateway into all this is in the twenty-fourth verse of the seventh chapter:
"O wretched man that I am!"
There you have the words of a man who has come to the end of himself. He has in the previous verses described how he had struggled and wrestled in his own power to obey the holy law of God, and had failed. But in answer to his own question he now finds the true answer and cries out: "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." From that he goes on to speak of what that deliverance is that he has found.
I want from these words to describe the path by which a man can be led out of the spirit of bondage into the spirit of liberty. You know how distinctly it is said: "Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear." We are continually warned that this is the great danger of the Christian life, to go again into bondage; and I want to describe the path by which a man can get out of bondage into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Rather, I want to describe the man himself.
First, these words are the language of a regenerate man; second, of an impotentman; third, of a wretched man; and fourth,of a man on the borders of complete liberty.
The Regenerate Man
There is much evidence of regeneration from the fourteenth verse of the chapter on to the twenty-third. "It is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me": that is the language of a regenerate man, a man who knows that his heart and nature have been renewed, and that sin is now a power in him that is not himself. "I delight in the law of the Lord after the inward man": that again is the language of a regenerate man. He dares to say when he does evil: "It is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." It is of great importance to understand this.
In the first two great sections of the epistle, Paul deals with justification and sanctification. In dealing with justification, he lays the foundation of the doctrine in the teaching about sin, not in the singular sin, but in the plural, sins—the actual transgressions. In the second part of the fifth chapter he begins to deal with sin, not as actual transgression, but as a power. just imagine what a loss it would have been to us if we had not this second half of the seventh chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, if Paul had omitted in his teaching this vital question of the sinfulness of the believer. We should have missed the question we all want answered as to sin in the believer. What is the answer? The regenerate man is one in whom the will has been renewed, and who can say: "I delight in the law of God after the inward man."
The Impotent Man
Here is the great mistake made by many Christian people: they think that when there is a renewed will, it is enough; but that is not the case. This regenerate man tells us: "I will to do what is good, but the power to perform I find not." How often people tell us that if you set yourself determinedly, you can perform what you will! But this man was as determined as any man can be, and yet he made the confession: "To will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good, I find not."
But, you ask: "How is it God makes a regenerate man utter such a confession, with a right will, with a heart that longs to do good, and longs to do its very utmost to love God?"
Let us look at this question. What has God given us our will for? Had the angels who fell, in their own will, the strength to stand? Verily, no. The will of the creature is nothing but an empty vessel in which the power of God is to be made manifest. The creature must seek in God all that it is to be. You have it in the second chapter of the epistle to the Philippians, and you have it here also, that Gods work is to work in us both to will and to doof His good pleasure. Here is a man who appears to say: "God has not worked to do in me." But we are taught that God works both to will and to do. How is the apparent contradiction to be reconciled?
You will find that in this passage (Rom. 7:6-25) the name of the Holy Spirit does not occur once, nor does the name of Christ occur. The man is wrestling and struggling to fulfill Gods law. Instead of the Holy Spirit and of Christ, the law is mentioned nearly twenty times. In this chapter, it shows a believer doing his very best to obey the law of God with his regenerate will. Not only this; but you will find the little words, I, me, my, occur more than forty times. It is the regenerate I in its impotence seeking to obey the law without being filled with the Spirit. This is the experience of almost every saint. After conversion a man begins to do his best, and he fails; but if we are brought into the full light, we need fail no longer. Nor need we fail at all if we have received the Spirit in His fullness at conversion.
God allows that failure that the regenerate man should be taught his own utter impotence. It is in the course of this struggle that there comes to us this sense of our utter sinfulness. It is Gods way of dealing with us. He allows that man to strive to fulfill the law that, as he strives and wrestles, he may be brought to this: "I am a regenerate child of God, but I am utterly helpless to obey His law." See what strong words are used all through the chapter to describe this condition: "I am carnal, sold under sin"; "I see another law in my members bringing me into captivity"; and last of all, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" This believer who bows here in deep contrition is utterly unable to obey the law of God.
The Wretched Man
Not only is the man who makes this confession a regenerate and an impotent man, but he is also a wretched man. He is utterly unhappy and miserable; and what is it that makes him so utterly miserable? It is because God has given him a nature that loves Himself. He is deeply wretched because he feels he is not obeying his God. He says, with brokenness of heart: "It is not I that do it, but I am under the awful power of sin, which is holding me down. It is I, and yet not I: alas! alas! it is myself; so closely am I bound up with it, and so closely is it intertwined with my very nature." Blessed be God when a man learns to say: "O wretched man that I am!" from the depth of his heart. He is on the way to the eighth chapter of Romans.
There are many who make this confession a pillow for sin. They say that Paul had to confess his weakness and helplessness in this way, what are they that they should try to do better? So the call to holiness is quietly set aside. Would God that every one of us had learned to say these words in the very spirit in which they are written here! When we hear sin spoken of as the abominable thing that God hates, do not many of us wince before the word? Would that all Christians who go on sinning and sinning would take this verse to heart. If ever you utter a sharp word say: "O wretched man that I am!" And every time you lose your temper, kneel down and understand that it never was meant by God that this was to be the state in which His child should remain. Would God that we would take this word into our daily life, and say it every time we are touched about our own honor, and every time we say sharp things, and every time we sin against the Lord God, and against the Lord Jesus Christ in His humility, and in His obedience, and in His self-sacrifice! Would to God you could forget everything else, and cry out: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?"
Why should you say this whenever you commit sin? Because it is when a man is brought to this confession that deliverance is at hand.
And remember it was not only the sense of being impotent and taken captive that made him wretched, but it was above all the sense of sinning against his God. The law was doing its work, making sin exceeding sinful in his sight. The thought of continually grieving God became utterly unbearable—it was this brought forth the piercing cry: "O wretched man!" As long as we talk and reason about our impotence and our failure, and only try to find out what Romans 7 means, it will profit us but little; but when once every sin gives new intensity to the sense of wretchedness, and we feel our whole state as one of not only helplessness, but actual exceeding sinfulness, we shall be pressed not only to ask: "Who shall deliver us?" but to cry: "I thank God through Jesus Christ my Lord."
The Almost-Delivered Man
The man has tried to obey the beautiful law of God. He has loved it, he has wept over his sin, he has tried to conquer, he has tried to overcome fault after fault, but every time he has ended in failure.
What did he mean by "the body of this death"? Did he mean, my body when I die? Verily no. In the eighth chapter you have the answer to this question in the words: "If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." That is the body of death from which he is seeking deliverance.
And now he is on the brink of deliverance! In the twenty-third verse of the seventh chapter we have the words: "I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members." It is a captivethat cries: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" He is a man who feels himself bound. But look to the contrast in the second verse of the eighth chapter: "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." That is the deliverance through Jesus Christ our Lord; the liberty to the captive which the Spirit brings. Can you keep captive any longer a man made free by the "law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus"?
But you say, the regenerate man, had not he the Spirit of Jesus when he spoke in the sixth chapter? Yes, but he did not know what the Holy Spirit could do for him.
God does not work by His Spirit as He works by a blind force in nature. He leads His people on as reasonable, intelligent beings, and therefore when He wants to give us that Holy Spirit whom He has promised, He brings us first to the end of self, to the conviction that though we have been striving to obey the law, we have failed. When we have come to the end of that, then He shows us that in the Holy Spirit we have the power of obedience, the power of victory, and the power of real holiness.
God works to will, and He is ready to work to do, but, alas! many Christians misunderstand this. They think because they have the will, it is enough, and that now they are able to do. This is not so. The new will is a permanent gift, an attribute of the new nature. The power to do is not a permanent gift, but must be each moment received from the Holy Spirit. It is the man who is conscious of his own impotence as a believer who will learn that by the Holy Spirit he can live a holy life.This man is on the brink of that great deliverance; the way has been prepared for the glorious eighth chapter. I now ask this solemn question: Where are you living? Is it with you, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me?" with now and then a little experience of the power of the Holy Spirit? or is it, "I thank God through Jesus Christ! The law of the Spirit hath set me free from the law of sin and of death"?
What the Holy Spirit does is to give the victory. "If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the flesh, ye shall live." It is the Holy Ghost who does this—the third Person of the Godhead. He it is who, when the heart is opened wide to receive Him, comes in and reigns there, and mortifies the deeds of the body, day by day, hour by hour, and moment by moment.
I want to bring this to a point. Remember, dear friend, what we need is to come to decision and action. There are in Scripture two very different sorts of Christians. The Bible speaks in Romans, Corinthians and Galatians about yielding to the flesh; and that is the life of tens of thousands of believers. All their lack of joy in the Holy Ghost, and their lack of the liberty He gives, is just owing to the flesh. The Spirit is within them, but the flesh rules the life. To be led by the Spirit of God is what they need. Would God that I could make every child of His realize what it means that the everlasting God has given His dear Son, Christ Jesus, to watch over you every day, and that what you have to do is to trust; and that the work of the Holy Spirit is to enable you. every moment to remember Jesus, and to trust Him! The Spirit has come to keep the link with Him unbroken every moment. Praise God for the Holy Ghost! We are so accustomed to think of the Holy Spirit as a luxury, for special times, or for special ministers and men. But the Holy Spirit is necessary for every believer, every moment of the day. Praise God you have Him, and that He gives you the full experience of the deliverance in Christ, as He makes you free from the power of sin.
Who longs to have the power and the liberty of the Holy Spirit? Oh, brother, bow before God in one final cry of despair:
"O God, must I go on sinning this way forever? Who shall deliver me, O wretched man that I am! from the body of this death?"
Are you ready to sink before God in that cry and seek the power of Jesus to dwell and work in you? Are you ready to say: "I thank God through Jesus Christ"?
What good does it do that we go to church or attend conventions, that we study our Bibles and pray, unless our lives are filled with the Holy Spirit? That is what God wants; and nothing else will enable us to live a life of power and peace. You know that when a minister or parent is using the catechism, when a question is asked an answer is expected. Alas! how many Christians are content with the question put here: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" but never give the answer. Instead of answering, they are silent. Instead of saying: "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord," they are forever repeating the question without the answer. If you want the path to the full deliverance of Christ, and the liberty of the Spirit, the glorious liberty of the children of God, take it through the seventh chapter of Romans; and then say: "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." Be not content to remain ever groaning, but say: "I, a wretched man, thank God, through Jesus Christ. Even though I do not see it all, I am going to praise God."
There is deliverance, there is the liberty of the Holy Spirit. The kingdom of God is "joy in the Holy Ghost."
Murray, Andrew. "O Wretched Man That I Am!." Chicago: Moody Press. Blue Letter Bible. 5 Apr 2004. 2008. 30 Oct 2008.
< http:// www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?
AuthorID=18&contentID=4618&commInfo=21&
topic=Absolute%20Surrender >
You know the wonderful place that this text has in the wonderful epistle to the Romans. It stands here at the end of the seventh chapter as the gateway into the eighth. In the first sixteen verses of the eighth chapter the name of the Holy Spirit is found sixteen times; you have there the description and promise of the life that a child of God can live in the power of the Holy Ghost. This begins in the second verse: "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." From that Paul goes on to speak of the great privileges of the child of God, who is to be led by the Spirit of God. The gateway into all this is in the twenty-fourth verse of the seventh chapter:
"O wretched man that I am!"
There you have the words of a man who has come to the end of himself. He has in the previous verses described how he had struggled and wrestled in his own power to obey the holy law of God, and had failed. But in answer to his own question he now finds the true answer and cries out: "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." From that he goes on to speak of what that deliverance is that he has found.
I want from these words to describe the path by which a man can be led out of the spirit of bondage into the spirit of liberty. You know how distinctly it is said: "Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear." We are continually warned that this is the great danger of the Christian life, to go again into bondage; and I want to describe the path by which a man can get out of bondage into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Rather, I want to describe the man himself.
First, these words are the language of a regenerate man; second, of an impotentman; third, of a wretched man; and fourth,of a man on the borders of complete liberty.
The Regenerate Man
There is much evidence of regeneration from the fourteenth verse of the chapter on to the twenty-third. "It is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me": that is the language of a regenerate man, a man who knows that his heart and nature have been renewed, and that sin is now a power in him that is not himself. "I delight in the law of the Lord after the inward man": that again is the language of a regenerate man. He dares to say when he does evil: "It is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." It is of great importance to understand this.
In the first two great sections of the epistle, Paul deals with justification and sanctification. In dealing with justification, he lays the foundation of the doctrine in the teaching about sin, not in the singular sin, but in the plural, sins—the actual transgressions. In the second part of the fifth chapter he begins to deal with sin, not as actual transgression, but as a power. just imagine what a loss it would have been to us if we had not this second half of the seventh chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, if Paul had omitted in his teaching this vital question of the sinfulness of the believer. We should have missed the question we all want answered as to sin in the believer. What is the answer? The regenerate man is one in whom the will has been renewed, and who can say: "I delight in the law of God after the inward man."
The Impotent Man
Here is the great mistake made by many Christian people: they think that when there is a renewed will, it is enough; but that is not the case. This regenerate man tells us: "I will to do what is good, but the power to perform I find not." How often people tell us that if you set yourself determinedly, you can perform what you will! But this man was as determined as any man can be, and yet he made the confession: "To will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good, I find not."
But, you ask: "How is it God makes a regenerate man utter such a confession, with a right will, with a heart that longs to do good, and longs to do its very utmost to love God?"
Let us look at this question. What has God given us our will for? Had the angels who fell, in their own will, the strength to stand? Verily, no. The will of the creature is nothing but an empty vessel in which the power of God is to be made manifest. The creature must seek in God all that it is to be. You have it in the second chapter of the epistle to the Philippians, and you have it here also, that Gods work is to work in us both to will and to doof His good pleasure. Here is a man who appears to say: "God has not worked to do in me." But we are taught that God works both to will and to do. How is the apparent contradiction to be reconciled?
You will find that in this passage (Rom. 7:6-25) the name of the Holy Spirit does not occur once, nor does the name of Christ occur. The man is wrestling and struggling to fulfill Gods law. Instead of the Holy Spirit and of Christ, the law is mentioned nearly twenty times. In this chapter, it shows a believer doing his very best to obey the law of God with his regenerate will. Not only this; but you will find the little words, I, me, my, occur more than forty times. It is the regenerate I in its impotence seeking to obey the law without being filled with the Spirit. This is the experience of almost every saint. After conversion a man begins to do his best, and he fails; but if we are brought into the full light, we need fail no longer. Nor need we fail at all if we have received the Spirit in His fullness at conversion.
God allows that failure that the regenerate man should be taught his own utter impotence. It is in the course of this struggle that there comes to us this sense of our utter sinfulness. It is Gods way of dealing with us. He allows that man to strive to fulfill the law that, as he strives and wrestles, he may be brought to this: "I am a regenerate child of God, but I am utterly helpless to obey His law." See what strong words are used all through the chapter to describe this condition: "I am carnal, sold under sin"; "I see another law in my members bringing me into captivity"; and last of all, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" This believer who bows here in deep contrition is utterly unable to obey the law of God.
The Wretched Man
Not only is the man who makes this confession a regenerate and an impotent man, but he is also a wretched man. He is utterly unhappy and miserable; and what is it that makes him so utterly miserable? It is because God has given him a nature that loves Himself. He is deeply wretched because he feels he is not obeying his God. He says, with brokenness of heart: "It is not I that do it, but I am under the awful power of sin, which is holding me down. It is I, and yet not I: alas! alas! it is myself; so closely am I bound up with it, and so closely is it intertwined with my very nature." Blessed be God when a man learns to say: "O wretched man that I am!" from the depth of his heart. He is on the way to the eighth chapter of Romans.
There are many who make this confession a pillow for sin. They say that Paul had to confess his weakness and helplessness in this way, what are they that they should try to do better? So the call to holiness is quietly set aside. Would God that every one of us had learned to say these words in the very spirit in which they are written here! When we hear sin spoken of as the abominable thing that God hates, do not many of us wince before the word? Would that all Christians who go on sinning and sinning would take this verse to heart. If ever you utter a sharp word say: "O wretched man that I am!" And every time you lose your temper, kneel down and understand that it never was meant by God that this was to be the state in which His child should remain. Would God that we would take this word into our daily life, and say it every time we are touched about our own honor, and every time we say sharp things, and every time we sin against the Lord God, and against the Lord Jesus Christ in His humility, and in His obedience, and in His self-sacrifice! Would to God you could forget everything else, and cry out: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?"
Why should you say this whenever you commit sin? Because it is when a man is brought to this confession that deliverance is at hand.
And remember it was not only the sense of being impotent and taken captive that made him wretched, but it was above all the sense of sinning against his God. The law was doing its work, making sin exceeding sinful in his sight. The thought of continually grieving God became utterly unbearable—it was this brought forth the piercing cry: "O wretched man!" As long as we talk and reason about our impotence and our failure, and only try to find out what Romans 7 means, it will profit us but little; but when once every sin gives new intensity to the sense of wretchedness, and we feel our whole state as one of not only helplessness, but actual exceeding sinfulness, we shall be pressed not only to ask: "Who shall deliver us?" but to cry: "I thank God through Jesus Christ my Lord."
The Almost-Delivered Man
The man has tried to obey the beautiful law of God. He has loved it, he has wept over his sin, he has tried to conquer, he has tried to overcome fault after fault, but every time he has ended in failure.
What did he mean by "the body of this death"? Did he mean, my body when I die? Verily no. In the eighth chapter you have the answer to this question in the words: "If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." That is the body of death from which he is seeking deliverance.
And now he is on the brink of deliverance! In the twenty-third verse of the seventh chapter we have the words: "I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members." It is a captivethat cries: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" He is a man who feels himself bound. But look to the contrast in the second verse of the eighth chapter: "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." That is the deliverance through Jesus Christ our Lord; the liberty to the captive which the Spirit brings. Can you keep captive any longer a man made free by the "law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus"?
But you say, the regenerate man, had not he the Spirit of Jesus when he spoke in the sixth chapter? Yes, but he did not know what the Holy Spirit could do for him.
God does not work by His Spirit as He works by a blind force in nature. He leads His people on as reasonable, intelligent beings, and therefore when He wants to give us that Holy Spirit whom He has promised, He brings us first to the end of self, to the conviction that though we have been striving to obey the law, we have failed. When we have come to the end of that, then He shows us that in the Holy Spirit we have the power of obedience, the power of victory, and the power of real holiness.
God works to will, and He is ready to work to do, but, alas! many Christians misunderstand this. They think because they have the will, it is enough, and that now they are able to do. This is not so. The new will is a permanent gift, an attribute of the new nature. The power to do is not a permanent gift, but must be each moment received from the Holy Spirit. It is the man who is conscious of his own impotence as a believer who will learn that by the Holy Spirit he can live a holy life.This man is on the brink of that great deliverance; the way has been prepared for the glorious eighth chapter. I now ask this solemn question: Where are you living? Is it with you, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me?" with now and then a little experience of the power of the Holy Spirit? or is it, "I thank God through Jesus Christ! The law of the Spirit hath set me free from the law of sin and of death"?
What the Holy Spirit does is to give the victory. "If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the flesh, ye shall live." It is the Holy Ghost who does this—the third Person of the Godhead. He it is who, when the heart is opened wide to receive Him, comes in and reigns there, and mortifies the deeds of the body, day by day, hour by hour, and moment by moment.
I want to bring this to a point. Remember, dear friend, what we need is to come to decision and action. There are in Scripture two very different sorts of Christians. The Bible speaks in Romans, Corinthians and Galatians about yielding to the flesh; and that is the life of tens of thousands of believers. All their lack of joy in the Holy Ghost, and their lack of the liberty He gives, is just owing to the flesh. The Spirit is within them, but the flesh rules the life. To be led by the Spirit of God is what they need. Would God that I could make every child of His realize what it means that the everlasting God has given His dear Son, Christ Jesus, to watch over you every day, and that what you have to do is to trust; and that the work of the Holy Spirit is to enable you. every moment to remember Jesus, and to trust Him! The Spirit has come to keep the link with Him unbroken every moment. Praise God for the Holy Ghost! We are so accustomed to think of the Holy Spirit as a luxury, for special times, or for special ministers and men. But the Holy Spirit is necessary for every believer, every moment of the day. Praise God you have Him, and that He gives you the full experience of the deliverance in Christ, as He makes you free from the power of sin.
Who longs to have the power and the liberty of the Holy Spirit? Oh, brother, bow before God in one final cry of despair:
"O God, must I go on sinning this way forever? Who shall deliver me, O wretched man that I am! from the body of this death?"
Are you ready to sink before God in that cry and seek the power of Jesus to dwell and work in you? Are you ready to say: "I thank God through Jesus Christ"?
What good does it do that we go to church or attend conventions, that we study our Bibles and pray, unless our lives are filled with the Holy Spirit? That is what God wants; and nothing else will enable us to live a life of power and peace. You know that when a minister or parent is using the catechism, when a question is asked an answer is expected. Alas! how many Christians are content with the question put here: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" but never give the answer. Instead of answering, they are silent. Instead of saying: "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord," they are forever repeating the question without the answer. If you want the path to the full deliverance of Christ, and the liberty of the Spirit, the glorious liberty of the children of God, take it through the seventh chapter of Romans; and then say: "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." Be not content to remain ever groaning, but say: "I, a wretched man, thank God, through Jesus Christ. Even though I do not see it all, I am going to praise God."
There is deliverance, there is the liberty of the Holy Spirit. The kingdom of God is "joy in the Holy Ghost."
Murray, Andrew. "O Wretched Man That I Am!." Chicago: Moody Press. Blue Letter Bible. 5 Apr 2004. 2008. 30 Oct 2008.
< http:// www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?
AuthorID=18&contentID=4618&commInfo=21&
topic=Absolute%20Surrender >
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