Stranger and Pilgrim

Being sensible that I am unable to do anything without God’s help, I do humbly entreat him by his grace to enable me to keep these Resolutions, so far as they are agreeable to his will, for Christ’s sake.
Remember to read over these Resolutions once a week.

1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to God’s glory, and my own good, profit and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without any consideration of the time, whether now, or never so many myriad’s of ages hence. Resolved to do whatever I think to be my duty and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general. Resolved to do this, whatever difficulties I meet with, how many and how great soever.
2. Resolved, to be continually endeavoring to find out some new invention and contrivance to promote the aforementioned things.
3. Resolved, if ever I shall fall and grow dull, so as to neglect to keep any part of these Resolutions, to repent of all I can remember, when I come to myself again.
4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, whether in soul or body, less or more, but what tends to the glory of God; nor be, nor suffer it, if I can avoid it.
5. Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can.
6. Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live.
7. Resolved, never to do anything, which I should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of my life.
8. Resolved, to act, in all respects, both speaking and doing, as if nobody had been so vile as I, and as if I had committed the same sins, or had the same infirmities or failings as others; and that I will let the knowledge of their failings promote nothing but shame in myself, and prove only an occasion of my confessing my own sins and misery to God.
9. Resolved, to think much on all occasions of my own dying, and of the common circumstances which attend death.
10. Resolved, when I feel pain, to think of the pains of martyrdom, and of hell. Continue reading

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by Augustus Toplady (1740-1778)

Not unto us, o LORD, not unto us, but unto Thy Name, give glory for Thy mercy, and for Thy truth’s sake (Psalm 115:1).

Some expositors have supposed, that this Psalm was penned by the prophet Daniel; on occasion of the miraculous deliverance of Shadrac, Meshac, and Abednego, when they came out, unhurt, from the burning fiery furnace, into which they had been thrown by the command of king Nebuchadnezzar.

And, indeed, there are not wanting passages, in the Psalm itself, which seem to countenance this conjecture. As where we read, at the fourth verse (speaking of the idols of the heathens, and, perhaps, with particular reference to that golden image which Nebuchadnezzar commanded to be worshipped), their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands: they have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they but they see not.

I dare say, that, in such an auditory as this, a number of Arminians are present. I fear, that all our public assemblies have too many of them. Perhaps, however, even these people, idolaters as they are, may be apt to blame, and, indeed, with justice, the absurdity of those who worship idols of silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. But let me ask: If it be so very absurd, to worship the work of other men’s hands; what must it be, to worship the works of our own hands? Perhaps, you may ask, “God forbid that I should do so.” Nevertheless, let me tell you, that trust, confidence, reliance, and dependence, for salvation, are all acts and very solemn ones too, of divine worship: and upon whatsoever you depend, whether in whole or in part, for your acceptance with God, and for your justification in His sight, whatsoever, you rely upon, and trust in, for the attainment of grace or glory; if it be any thing short of God in Christ, you are an idolater to all intents and purposes. Continue reading

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Charles Spurgeon considered Rutherford’s letters to be “the nearest thing to inspiration which can be found in all the writings of mere men.” And indeed, one familiar with Rutherford’s writings can hardly disagree. The beauty of his legacy lies in his dedication to exalting the glory of Christ, and to abasing himself.

Here is a poem, composed by Mrs. Anne Ross Cousin, wife of a minister of the Free Church of Scotland. The poem is as remarkable as it is beautiful in that Mrs. Cousin extracted from the letters of Samuel Rutherford many of his most memorable sayings and wove them into a hymn of 19 stanzas, maintaining throughout high poetic excellence and great faithfulness to the language and spirit of the letters.

Read this poem, and then spend some time prayerfully perusing the letters themselves! They may be freely read and downloaded here. May God grant His people comfort and encouragement through the writings of this humble man of faith!

The sands of time are sinking,
The dawn of Heaven breaks,
The summer morn I’ve sighed for,
The fair sweet morn awakes:
Dark, dark hath been the midnight,
But dayspring is at hand,
And glory-glory dwelleth
In Immanuel’s land.

Oh! well it is for ever,
Oh! well for evermore,
My nest hung in no forest
Of all this death-doom’d shore:
Yea, let the vain world vanish,
As from the ship the strand,
And glory-glory dwelleth
In Immanuel’s land.

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“When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for a people to declare their dependence upon God…”

The Declaration of Independence begins with the words, “When in the course of human events.” The Scriptures, God’s Declaration of our Dependence upon Himself, begins with the words, “In the beginning.”

After reading Edward’s sermon this afternoon, God Glorified in Man’s Dependence, I spent some time contemplating my life and how I ought to show honor to God by acknowledging dependence upon His sufficiency. For a few hours this evening my family (all eight of them) left for a short time and it gave me an opportunity read Edward’s sermon yet again. And then I wrote the following poem:

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There is no truth more comforting in my life than to know that God is glorified through my dependence! May God cause me to despair of my own ability, to rest in Christ, to trust Him for all, to praise Him when I don’t understand, and to glory in my weakness!

“It is of God that Christ becomes ours, that we are united to Him. It is of God that we receive faith to be close to Him and have an interest in Him. It is of God that we receive all the benefits Christ has purchased.” – Jonathan Edwards

Believing this and confessing it before men is that faith whereby we exalt the Sufficiency of Jesus Christ! May the Lord enable all of us to that end!
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Here is a short poem I wrote a while back to keep me humble! May God grant that all of us are blessed, and humbled, by the truth of our utter and continual dependancy upon God for His mercy.

Servants of the Sovereign Ruler
Saved by Grace to seek His will
Plowing fields and feeding cattle
I cannot the law fulfill

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Yet I strive with earnest effort
Daily praying, daily dying
Take my cross, His life to follow
Pleasure, sin and self denying

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If I prayed with every breath
Praised His name with heart and mind
Sold my goods and didn’t covet
Bound each thought which crossed my mind

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Could I do as good as Jesus
Walk this earth without one sin
All temptation count as nothing
Every motive pure within

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Would he thank His humble servant?
Bid him with the master dine?
Nay, “a debt paid hath no merit
Specially, when your life tis mine”

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When you’ve done what God’s commanded
Take no pride in works nor choice
Christ Himself has made you holy
Give Him thanks, Believe, Rejoice!

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But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
Luke 17:7‐10

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“And I will remember My covenant.”—Genesis 9:15.

MARK the form of the promise. God does not say, “And when ye shall look upon the bow, and ye shall remember My covenant, then I will not destroy the earth,” but it is gloriously put, not upon our memory, which is fickle and frail, but upon God’s memory, which is infinite and immutable. “The bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant.” Oh! it is not my remembering God, it is God’s remembering me which is the ground of my safety; it is not my laying hold of His covenant, but His covenant’s laying hold on me. Glory be to God! the whole of the bulwarks of salvation are secured by divine power, and even the minor towers, which we may imagine might have been left to man, are guarded by almighty strength. Even the remembrance of the covenant is not left to our memories, for we might forget, but our Lord cannot forget the saints whom He has graven on the palms of His hands. It is with us as with Israel in Egypt; the blood was upon the lintel and the two side-posts, but the Lord did not say, “When you see the blood I will pass over you,” but “When I see the blood I will pass over you.” My looking to Jesus brings me joy and peace, but it is God’s looking to Jesus which secures my salvation and that of all His elect, since it is impossible for our God to look at Christ, our bleeding Surety, and then to be angry with us for sins already punished in Him. No, it is not left with us even to be saved by remembering the covenant. There is no mixture here—not a single thread of the creature mars the fabric. It is not of man, neither by man, but of the Lord alone. We should remember the covenant, and we shall do it, through divine grace; but the hinge of our safety does not hang there—it is God’s remembering us, not our remembering Him; and hence the covenant is an everlasting covenant.

– C.H. Spurgeon

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The scripture tells us that “The LORD will command his lovingkindness” (Psalms 42:8); and again, ”The LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.” (Psalms 133:3); and, ”He hath commanded his covenant for ever” (Psalms 111:9).

Surely, nothing can be more comforting to the child of God than this! To know that the very God who sovereignly works all things according to His omnipotence and who is obeyed even by wind and waves has commanded His own holy attributes to endure with lovingkindness forever and ever, to the praise of His redemptive glorious grace in Christ Jesus!

I have penned a short little poem to capture this beautiful truth. My prayer is that the Lord will use this to uplift and edify God’s remnant, elect according to Grace!

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Mouse-traps are said to be irreducibly complex. Remove one piece, and the rest becomes worthless; it actually ceases to be a mouse-trap. So also, God’s creation, like the mouse-trap, is irreducibly complex in innumerable ways.

The great puritan theologian Thomas Watson, when writing a treatise regarding the Glory of God, does a magnificent job of describing the infinitely irreducible “God of Glory.”

Consider well the following insight from Mr. Watson:

Question: When we speak of God’s glory, the question will be moved, What are we to understand by God’s glory?

Answer. There is a twofold glory:

1. The glory that God has in himself, his intrinsic glory. Glory is essential to the Godhead, as light is to the sun: he is called the “God of glory.” Acts 7:2. Glory is the sparkling of the Deity; it is so co-natural to the Godhead, that God cannot be God without it. The creature’s honour is not essential to his being. A king is a man without his regal ornaments, when his crown and royal robes are taken away; but God’s glory is such an essential part of his being, that he cannot be God without it. God’s very life lies in his glory. This glory can receive no addition, because it is infinite; it is that which God is most tender of, and which he will not part with. Isa. 48:11, “My glory I will not give to another.” God will give temporal blessings to his children, such as wisdom, riches, honour; he will give them spiritual blessings, he will give them grace, he will give them his love, he will give them heaven; but his essential glory he will not give to another. King Pharaoh parted with a ring off his finger to Joseph, and a gold chain, but he would not part with his throne. Gen. 41:40. “Only in the throne will I be greater than thou.” So God will do much for his people; he will give them the inheritance; he will put some of Christ’s glory, as mediator upon them; but his essential glory he will not part with; “in the throne he will be greater.”

2. The glory which is ascribed to God, or which his creatures labour to bring to him. 1 Chron. 16:29, “Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name.” And, 1 Cor. 6:20, “Glorify God in your body, and in your spirit.” The glory we give God is nothing else but our lifting up his name in the world, and magnifying him in the eyes of others. Phil. 1:20, “Christ shall be magnified in my body.”

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