Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 29th) Know How to Wait He that believeth shall not make haste — Isaiah 28:16 He shall make haste to keep the Lord's commandments; but he shall not make haste in any impatient or improper sense. He shall not haste to run away, for he shall not be overcome with the fear which causes panic. When others are flying hither and thither as if their wits had failed them, the believer shall be quiet, calm, and deliberate, and so shall be able to act wisely in the hour of trial. He shall not haste in his expectations, craving his good things at once and on the spot; but he will wait God's time. Some are in a desperate hurry to have the bird in the hand; for they regard the Lord's promise as a bird in the bush, not likely to be theirs. Believers know how to wait. He shall not haste by plunging into wrong or questionable action. Unbelief must be doing something, and thus it works its own undoing; but faith makes no more haste than good speed, and thus it is not forced to go back sorrowfully by the way which it followed heedlessly. How is it with me? Am I believing, and am I therefore keeping to the believer's pace, which is walking with God? Peace, fluttering spirit! Oh, rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him! Heart, see that thou do this at once! #faith #bible #christian

“Wherever Christ ceases to be man’s savior, there liberty perishes as the state again asserts its messianic claims.” — R J Rushdoony. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 28th) Doing What God Can Bless The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto — Deuteronomy 28:8 If we obey the Lord our God He will bless that which He gives us. Riches are no curse when blessed of the Lord. When men have more than they require for their immediate need, and begin to lay up in store-houses, the dry rot of covetousness or the blight of hard-heartedness is apt to follow the accumulation; but with God's blessing it is not so. Prudence arranges the saving, liberality directs the spending, gratitude maintains consecration, and praise sweetens enjoyment. It is a great mercy to have God's blessing in one's iron safe, and on one's banking account. What a favor is made ours by the last clause! "The Lord shall bless thee in all that thou settest thine hand unto." We would not put our hand to anything upon which we dare not ask God's blessing, neither would we go about it without prayer and faith. But what a privilege to be able to look for the Lord's help in every enterprise! Some talk of a lucky man: the blessing of the Lord is better than luck. The patronage of the great is nothing to the favor of God. Self-reliance is all very well; but the Lord's blessing is infinitely more than all the fruit of talent, genius, or tact. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 27th) Rest in All Thy Goings And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest — Exodus 33:14 Precious promise! Lord, enable me to appropriate it as all my own. We must go at certain times from our abode, for here we have no continuing city. It often happens that when we feel most at home in a place, we are suddenly called away from it. Here is the antidote for this ill. The Lord Himself will keep us company. His presence, which includes His favor, His fellowship, His care, and His power, shall be ever with us in every one of our marchings. This means far more than it says; for, in fact, it means all things. If we have God present with us, we have possession of Heaven and earth. Go with me, Lord, and then command me where thou wilt! But we hope to find a place of rest. The text promises it. We are to have rest of God's own giving, making, and preserving. His presence will cause us to rest even when we are on the march, yea, even in the midst of battle. Rest! Thrice blessed word. Can it ever be enjoyed by mortals? Yes, there is the promise, and by faith we plead it. Rest comes from the Comforter, from the Prince of Peace, and from the glorious Father who rested on the seventh day from all His works. To be with God is to rest in the most emphatic sense. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 26th) Heavenly Alchemy Your sorrow shall be turned into joy — John 16:20 Their particular sorrow was the death and absence of their Lord, and it was turned into joy when He rose from the dead and showed Himself in their midst. All the sorrows of saints shall be thus transmuted; even the worst of them, which look as if they must for ever remain fountains of bitterness. Then the more sorrow the more joy. If we have loads of sorrow, then the Lord's power will turn them into tons of joy. Then the bitterer the trouble the sweeter the pleasure: the swinging of the pendulum far to the left will cause it to go all the farther to the right. The remembrance of the grief shall heighten the flavor of the delight: we shall set the one in contrast with the other, and the brilliance of the diamond shall be the more clearly seen because of the black foil behind it. Come, my heart, cheer up! In a little while I shall be as glad as I am now gloomy. Jesus tells me that by a heavenly alchemy my sorrow shall be turned into joy. I do not see how it is to be, but I believe it, and I begin to sing by way of anticipation. This depression of spirit is not for long, I shall soon be up among the happy ones who praise the Lord day and night, and there I shall sing of the mercy which delivered me out of great afflictions. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 25th) Mountains Turned to Plains Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it — Zechariah 4:7 At this hour a mountain of difficulty, distress, or necessity, may be in our way, and natural reason sees no path over it, or through it, or round it. Let faith come in, and straightway the mountain disappears and becomes a plain. But faith must first hear the word of the Lord - "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." This grand truth is a prime necessity for meeting the insurmountable trials of life. I see that I can do nothing, and that all reliance on man is vanity. "Not by might." I see that no visible means can be relied on, but the force is in the invisible Spirit. God alone must work, and men and means must be nothing accounted of. If it be so, that the Almighty God takes up the concerns of His people, then great mountains are nothing. He can remove worlds as boys toss balls about, or drive them with their foot. This power He can lend to me. If the Lord bids me move an Alp I can do it through His name. It may be a great mountain, but even before my feebleness it shall become a plain; for the Lord hath said it. What can I be afraid of with God on my side? #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 24th) Pardon and Forgiveness He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever — Psalm 103:9 He will chide sometimes, or He would not be a wise Father for such poor erring children as we are. His chiding is very painful to those who are true, because they feel how sadly they deserve it, and how wrong it is on their part to grieve Him. We know what this chiding means, and we bow before the Lord, mourning that we should cause Him to be angry with us. But what a comfort we find in these lines! "Not always" will He chide. If we repent and turn to Him with hearts broken for sin and broken from sin, He will smile upon us at once. It is no pleasure to Him to turn a frowning face toward those whom He loves with all His heart: it is His joy that our joy should be full. Come, let us seek His face. There is no reason for despair, nor even for despondency. Let us love a chiding God, and before long we shall sing: "Thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortest me." Begone, ye dark forebodings, ye ravens of the soul! Come in, ye humble hopes and grateful memories, ye doves of the heart! He who pardoned us long ago as a judge, will again forgive us as a father, and we shall rejoice in His sweet, unchanging love. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 23rd) Acquiring Perseverance The Lord thy God will put out those nations before thee by little and little — Deuteronomy 7:22 We are not to expect to win victories for the Lord Jesus by a single blow. Evil principles and practices die hard. In some places it takes years of labor to drive out even one of the many vices which defile the inhabitants. We must carry on the war with all our might, even when favored with little manifest success. Our business in this world is to conquer it for Jesus. We are not to make compromises, but to exterminate evils. We are not to seek popularity, but to wage unceasing war with iniquity. Infidelity, popery, drink, impurity, oppression, worldliness, error; these are all to be "put out." The Lord our God can alone accomplish this. He works by His faithful servants; and, blessed be His name, He promises that He will so work. "Jehovah thy God will put out those nations before thee." This He will do by degrees, that we may learn perseverance, may increase in faith, may earnestly watch, and may avoid carnal security. Let us thank God for a little success, and pray for more. Let us never sheathe the sword till the whole land is won for Jesus. Courage, my heart! Go on little by little, for many littles will make a great whole. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 17th) God Never Forsakes For the Lord will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance — Psalm 94:14 No, nor will He cast even so much as one of them. Man has his cast-offs, but God has none; for His choice is unchangeable, and His love is everlasting. None can find out a single person whom God has forsaken after having revealed Himself savingly to him. This grand truth is mentioned in the psalm to cheer the heart of the afflicted. The Lord chastens His own; but He never forsakes them. The result of the double work of the law and the rod is our instruction, and the fruit of that instruction is a quieting of spirit, a sobriety of mind, out of which comes rest. The ungodly are let alone till the pit is digged into which they will fall and be taken; but the godly are sent to school to be prepared for their glorious destiny hereafter. Judgment will return and finish its work upon the rebels, but it will equally return to vindicate the sincere and godly. Hence we may bear the rod of chastisement with calm submission; it means not anger, but love. #faith #bible #christian

"Christ is King. He demands full submission and possesses authority over all kingdoms of the world. This is not a cool political slogan, it is a loud proclamation that a flesh and blood human being who rose from the dead currently reigns over every square inch of the cosmos." --Matthew Pearson #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 16th) Weapons Doomed to Fail No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn — Isaiah 54:17 There is great clatter in the forges and smithies of the enemy. They are making weapons wherewith to smite the saints. They could not even do as much as this if the Lord of saints did not allow them; for He has created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire. But see how busily they labor! How many swords and spears they fashion! It matters nothing, for on the blade of every weapon you may read this inscription: It shall not prosper. But now listen to another noise: it is the strife of tongues. Tongues are more terrible instruments than can be made with hammers and anvils, and the evil which they inflict cuts deeper and spreads wider. What will become of us now? Slander, falsehood, insinuation, ridicule - these are poisoned arrows; how can we meet them? The Lord God promises us that, if we cannot silence them, we shall, at least, escape from being ruined by them. They condemn us for the moment, but we shall condemn them at last, and for ever. The mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped, and their falsehoods shall be turned to the honor of those good men who suffered by them. #faith #bible #christian

New article in the local paper by my pastor: Definition of self is important. "It can be cataclysmic when God’s plan for us forces a change in the whole way we’ve lived our lives up to that point. I’ve seen it happen several times since I was called to serve as a pastor. I have no Bible behind me when I say this, but experience leads me to assert that it’s especially difficult for men of action, or activity, to encounter a change in their circumstance that forces them to spend some time in what feels like “doing nothing.” This is because men especially are tempted to view themselves in light of what they do or accomplish. You hear it in our conversation when we meet each other for the first time. After we’ve shaken hands, one of the first questions will be, “So, what do you do?” If we ever get to the point of talking about family, or what’s really important to us, or what we’d really like to pursue, it’s after we’ve defined ourselves by sharing our present activity. If the question is “Who are you?” we’ll answer with our job. I’m a rancher. I’m in construction. I’m retired military. This isn’t great, but it’s understandable. Since the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, a man’s labor has been central to his existence. By the sweat of your brow you shall eat your food, Genesis 3:19. If anyone in the Bible had a legitimate reason to feel displaced by a sudden shift in his own plans, I imagine the apostle Paul was that guy. In Acts 23, Jesus shows up and says to him, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.” From that point forward, Paul is never a free man again. The rest of the book encompasses about five years, and the apostle is a prisoner for all of it. The book ends with him still confined. Tradition has it that this captivity didn’t end until Nero had Paul beheaded in Rome in the late 60s A.D. Paul spent the previous years as a man on the go. He made three large circuits throughout the region of Asia Minor that encompassed many years. He planted churches; survived riots and death threats; and was even stoned once and left for dead. His life was marked by controversy and drama. It must’ve been jarring to spend the last years of his life cooling his jets in the ol’ Gray Bar Hotel. We speculate that he did a lot of writing from captivity, though. Several books of the New Testament probably come from that period of relative inactivity. It’s noteworthy that he refers to himself as “the prisoner of the Lord” in Ephesians 4:1. He was confined by the Romans, at the insistence of the Jews, but he doesn’t blame them or speak resentfully about his situation. He’s learned who and what should really define him. He’s not summed up so much by what he’s doing (which was a whole lot of sitting there) but by what the Lord was doing in him. How do you define yourself? How does God define you? It’s of some importance that we make these match." Gordan Runyan is pastor of Tucumcari’s Immanuel Baptist Church and author of “Radical Moses: The Amazing Civil Freedom Built into Ancient Israel.” Contact him at: reformnm@yahoo.com https://www.qcsunonline.com/story/2023/11/15/opinion/definition-of-self-is-important/25317.html #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 15th) Limitless Riches My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus — Philippians 4:19 Paul's God is our God, and will supply all our need. Paul felt sure of this in reference to the Philippians, and we feel sure of it as to ourselves. God will do it, for it is like Him: He loves us, He delights to bless us, and it will glorify Him to do so. His pity, His power, His love, His faithfulness, all work together that we be not famished. What a measure doth the Lord go by: "According to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." The riches of His grace are large, but what shall we say of the riches of His glory? His "riches of glory by Christ Jesus," who shall form an estimate of this? According to this immeasurable measure will God fill up the immense abyss of our necessities. He makes the Lord Jesus the receptacle and the channel of His fullness, and then He imparts to us His wealth of love in its highest form. Hallelujah! The writer knows what it is to be tried in the work of the Lord. Fidelity has been recompensed with anger, and liberal givers have stopped their subscriptions; but he whom they sought to oppress has not been one penny the poorer, nay, rather he has been the richer; for this promise has been true, "My God shall supply all our need." God's supplies are surer than any bank. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 14th) The Name to Use If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it — John 14:14 What a wide promise! Anything! Whether large or small, all my needs are covered by that word "anything." Come, my soul, be free at the mercy seat, and hear thy Lord saying to thee, "Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." What a wise promise! We are always to ask in the name of Jesus. While this encourages us, it also honors Him. This is a constant plea. Occasionally every other plea is darkened, especially such as we could draw from our own relation to God, or our experience of His grace; but at such times the name of Jesus is as mighty at the throne as ever, and we may plead it with full assurance. What an instructive prayer! I may not ask for anything to which I cannot put Christ's hand and seal. I dare not use my Lord's name to a selfish or willful petition. I may only use my Lord's name to prayers which He would Himself pray if He were in my case. It is a high privilege to be authorized to ask in the name of Jesus as if Jesus Himself asked; but our love to Him will never allow us to set that name where He would not have set it. Am I asking for that which Jesus approves? Dare I put His seal to my prayer? Then I have that which I seek of the Father. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 13th) The Unfailing Watch Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep — Psalm 121:4 Jehovah is "the Keeper of Israel." No form of unconsciousness ever steals over Him, neither the deeper slumber nor the slighter sleep. He never fails to watch the house and the heart of His people. This is a sufficient reason for our resting in perfect peace. Alexander said that he slept because his friend Parmenio watched; much more may we sleep because our God is our guard. "Behold" is here set up to call our attention to the cheering truth. Israel, when he had a stone for his pillow, fell asleep; but his God was awake, and came in vision to His servant. When we lie defenseless, Jehovah Himself will cover our head. The Lord keeps His people as a rich man keeps his treasure, as a captain keeps a city with a garrison, as a sentry keeps watch over his sovereign. None can harm those who are in such keeping. Let me put my soul into His dear hands. He never forgets us, never ceases actively to care for us, never finds Himself unable to preserve us. O my Lord, keep me, lest I wander and fall and perish. Keep me, that I may keep thy commandments. By thine unslumbering care prevent my sleeping like the sluggard, and perishing like those who sleep the sleep of death. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 12th) Sanctified Souls Are Satisfied My people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord — Jeremiah 31:14 Note the "my" which comes twice: "My people shall be satisfied with my goodness." The kind of people who are satisfied with God are marked out as God's own. He is pleased with them, for they are pleased with Him. They call Him their God, and He calls them His people; He is satisfied to take them for a portion, and they are satisfied with Him for their portion. There is a mutual communion of delight between God's Israel and Israel's God. These people are satisfied. This is a grand thing. Very few of the sons of men are ever satisfied, let their lot be what it may; they have swallowed the horse-leech, and it continually cries, "Give! Give!" Only sanctified souls are satisfied souls. God Himself must both convert us and content us. It is no wonder that the Lord's people should be satisfied with the goodness of their Lord. Here is goodness without mixture, bounty without stint, mercy without chiding, love without change, favor without reserve. If God's goodness does not satisfy us, what will? What! Are we still groaning? Surely there is a wrong desire within if it be one which God's goodness does not satisfy. Lord, I am satisfied. Blessed be thy name. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 11th) The Lord's Free Men For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace — Romans 6:14 Sin will reign if it can: it cannot be satisfied with any place below the throne of the heart. We sometimes fear that it will conquer us, and then we cry unto the Lord, "Let not any iniquity have dominion over me." This is His comforting answer, "Sin shall not have dominion over you. It may assail you, and even wound you; but it shall never establish sovereignty over you." If we were under the law, our sin would gather strength and hold us under its power; for it is the punishment of sin that a man comes under the power of sin. As we are under the covenant of grace, we are secured against departing from the living God by the sure declaration of the covenant. Grace is promised to us, by which we are restored from our wanderings, cleansed from our impurities, and set free from the chains of habit. We might lie down in despair and be "content to serve the Egyptians" if we were still as slaves working for eternal life; but since we are the Lord's free men, we take courage to fight with our corruptions and temptations, being assured that sin shall never bring us under its sway again. God Himself giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. #faith #bible #christian

We’ve made a deal with the Devil. We’ve agreed to practice our faith removed from the public square. We’re told as long as we keep our faith private & personal & dont intrude into the public arena, we can exercise our First Amendment rights in the exercise of religion. RC Sproul #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 10th) Walk without Stumbling He will not suffer thy foot to be moved — Psalm 121:3 If the Lord will not suffer it, neither men nor devils can do it. How greatly would they rejoice if they could give us a disgraceful fall, drive us from our position, and bury us out of memory! They could do this to their heart's content were it not for one hindrance, and only one: the Lord will not suffer it; and if He does not suffer it, we shall not suffer it. The way of life is like traveling among the Alps. Along mountain paths one is constantly exposed to the slipping of the foot. Where the way is high the head is apt to swim, and then the feet soon slide: there are spots which are smooth as glass, and others that are rough with loose stones, and in either of these a fall is hard to avoid. He who throughout life is enabled to keep himself upright and to walk without stumbling has the best of reasons for gratitude. What with pitfalls and snares, weak knees, weary feet, and subtle enemies, no child of God would stand fast for an hour were it not for the faithful love which will not suffer his foot to be moved. "Amidst a thousand snares I stand Upheld and guarded by thy hand; That hand unseen shall hold me still, And lead me to thy holy hill." #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (November 9th) Necessary Knowledge Thus shall they know that I the Lord their God am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord God — Ezekiel 34:30 To be the Lord's own people is a choice blessing, but to know that we are such is a comfortable blessing. It is one thing to hope that God is with us, and another thing to know that He is so. Faith saves us, but assurance satisfies us. We take God to be our God when we believe in Him; but we get the joy of Him when we know that He is ours, and that we are His. No believer should be content with hoping and trusting, he should ask the Lord to lead him on to full assurance, so that matters of hope may become matters of certainty. It is when we enjoy covenant blessings, and see our Lord Jesus raised up for us as a plant of renown, that we come to a clear knowledge of the favor of God toward us. Not by law, but by grace, do we learn that we are the Lord's people. Let us always turn our eyes in the direction of free grace. Assurance of faith can never come by the works of the law. It is an evangelical virtue, and can only reach us in a gospel way. Let us not look within. Let us look to the Lord alone. As we see Jesus we shall see our salvation. Lord, send us such a flood-tide of thy love that we shall be washed beyond the mire of doubt and fear. #faith #bible #christian