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Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your
heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5.19,20
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20 always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
Ephesians 5.19,20 (NASB)
Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father 21 and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Ephesians 5.19,20 (NIV)
The Singing Marine
Corporal William Shurts, 21, of F. company, 5th Marine
Regiment, was lit by a sniper's bullet on a Korean hill. He died the next day. His
inspirational singing brought cheer and courage to the trenches. His comrades described
him as the "man who brought God to the front lines!" His favorite song was 'The
Old Rugged Cross." How this song enhearted the men in the foxholes! Often, they would
join with Corporal Shurts on the chorus. Passing from man to man, William spoke quietly to
them of faith in God. "After he talked to us a comrade wrote "the dark night was
not so dark, and as you looked up, you thanked God that He had sent a man among you whose
belief was so strong that he could PASS IT ALONG.
Sing, my tongue, the Savior's glory,
Of His Flesh the mystery sing;
Of the Blood, all price exceeding,
Shed by our immortal King.
Saint Thomas Aquinas
January 30
"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the
door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me" Revelation 3:20 .
Here we are confronted with one of the sublime "I Ams." In this verse, Jesus is
presented as the guest of our heart who actively seeks us. Dr. Alexander Maclaren tells of
a painting: "He who is the light of the world stands, girded with the royal mantle
clasped with the priestly breastplate, bearing in His hand the lamp of truth, and there,
amidst the dew of night and the rank hemlock, He pleads for entrance at the closed door
which has no handle on its outer side, and is hinged to open only from within."
Homiletic Commentary, Revelation, page 491.
Our Jesus can't become any more human than fellowshipping with us at the table. "Come
and dine on My heavenly bread of comfort," He pleads with us. In His great I AM's, He
tells us, "I AM the Staff of Consolation on which you can lean; I AM the Bread which
you can eat to gain strength; I AM the Good Shepherd who will lead you through your
valley; I AM your very present help in this time of trouble."
I Am not was or will be. What precious comfort there is in this promise. "I AM all
that you need," He demonstrates and remonstrates with us with a love we cannot
comprehend. With some of us He must knock loudly and repeatedly through what we perceive
as sorrows. When He finally gets our attention and we open the door that was once closed
through ignorance and indifference, then He brings to our hearts and houses His feast of
love and delight and pleasant communion. He makes up our deficiencies with His
sufficiencies and gives us such satisfaction that we will finally gladly respond to His
Word and the impulses of the Holy Spirit for these are the knockings at our heart and door.
And how grateful we should be that He will never close that door.
Pat Nordman ©
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Excerpts from today's Spurgeon's Devotions |
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Spurgeon's Morning for January 30 |
Spurgeon's Evening January 30 |
"When thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, then thou shalt bestir thyself." - 2 Samuel 5:24 |
"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance." - Ephesians 1:11 |
The members of Christ's Church should be very prayerful, always seeking the unction of the Holy One to rest upon their hearts, that the kingdom of Christ may come, and that his "will be done on earth, even as it is in heaven;" but there are times when God seems especially to favour Zion, such seasons ought to be to them like "the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees." |
When Jesus gave himself for us, he gave us all the rights and privileges which went with himself; so that now, although as eternal God, he has essential rights to which no creature may venture to pretend, yet as Jesus, the Mediator, the federal head of the covenant of grace, he has no heritage apart from us. |
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... by Pat Nordman Acts 4:13
It was beyond doubt that these unsophisticated and common men were
friends of Jesus. Their words and acts proved it. What was it that finally convinced the
authorities that these men they scorned now were so bold because they had been with Jesus? Religion
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January 30 Exodus 38:1 - 39:43
Linked to Bible Gaitway TM
Today's Devotion
Simple
"When they saw the
courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were
astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus"
"But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise;
God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong" 1 Corinthians 1:27.
Peter, impulsive and assertive, who had just recently cursed and disowned his Lord, is
transformed from sinking sand into bedrock firmness; John, ambitious, sensitive, longing
for love and companionship, becomes valiant.
What was it that made this personality and character change? Basically
they remained simple of heart and mind. This is what Jesus wanted--and wants--in His
disciples. It was their devotion and courage and determination that changed. It was the
power of the Holy Spirit that wrought the change, and not the power of money or intellect
or social urgings. These men were still poor and unlettered, but now they were clothed
with the armor of God.
If we don't know the Person, then we can't have a true change of
personality. Peter and John knew Jesus intimately. Indeed, John rested on Jesus' breast at
the Last Supper (John 13:25). We, too, must lay on the bosom of Jesus and share our
intimate secrets with Him. Then others will note that we have been with the lovely Jesus.
It was
the power of the Holy Spirit that wrought the change...
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